Cairo, 8 May 2023 (GNP): After more than ten years of suspension, the Arab League reinstated Syria’s regime on Sunday, ensuring President Bashar Al-Assad’s return to the Arab fold after a period in exile.
As a result of a decision made by all of the Arab League’s foreign ministers, government delegations from Syria “will resume their participation in Arab League meetings” as of this coming Sunday.
Hussein Arnous, the prime minister of Syria, stated on Sunday that Syria has endured “misinformation and distortion campaigns launched by our enemies” for the last 12 years.
The “prestigious position” Syria occupies both locally and globally, he claimed, was evident in the meetings held on Sunday.
Also Read: Joint Statement of 5th China-Afghanistan-Pakistan Foreign Ministers’ Dialogue
Syria’s foreign ministry states that “Arab cooperation” and “an effective and constructive Arab approach… based on dialogue, mutual respect, and common Arab interests” are crucial.
The ministerial meeting was conducted in the league’s headquarters in Cairo, and Prince Faisal bin Farhan, the Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister, attended as well.
He tweeted that the ministers “consulted and exchanged views on the efforts made to reach a political solution to the Syrian crisis that ends its repercussions and preserves Syria’s unity, security, stability and Arab identity; returns it to its Arab surroundings, to achieve the good of its brotherly people”.
https://twitter.com/KSAmofaEN/status/1655239688645406720
According to broadcast remarks by Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit, the decision would enable Assad to participate in the forthcoming Arab League meeting on May 19. The disagreement would be resolved gradually, as per the statement.
Assad last participated in an Arab League conference in 2010. In 2013, opposition leaders attended the group’s meeting in Doha, provoking an angry response from Damascus.
However, Gheit added that “This doesn’t mean that the Syria crisis has been resolved, on the contrary, it allows the Arab (states) for the first time in years to communicate with the Syrian government to discuss all the problems”.
Also Read: The Northern Mecca: What Has the Islamic World Created in Russia
Additionally, he noted that regaining Syria’s membership did not imply that other Arab nations had bilaterally restored ties with Damascus.
The restoration of Syria to the organization was “the beginning… not the end of the issue,” he continued, emphasizing that it was up to individual nations to determine whether to restore diplomatic relations with Damascus.
The Arab League council also praised the Arab declarations made during the meetings in Jeddah on April 14 and Amman on May 1, 2023, both of which focused on Syria.
The Amman Declaration calls for a “step-by-step” resolution to the Syrian crisis. The council also decided to establish a ministerial committee made up of Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt, and the league’s secretary-general to monitor its implementation. This committee will also continue direct communication with the Syrian regime.
