​​​​​​​Panorama of the week... A cautious rapprochement between Saudi Arabia-Syria

During the past week, Arab newspapers touched upon the Saudi-Syrian relations.

Syria after Iran: Saudi Arabia adopts "zero severing relations"

The beginning of the Saudi-Syrian relations, and in this regard, Al-Arab newspaper said, "After the rapprochement with Iran, Saudi Arabia moved to "zero sever relations" with Syria, a path that would allow Riyadh to focus on its major strategic projects, by removing the obstacle of severed diplomatic relations.

Three well-informed sources said that Syria and Saudi Arabia agreed to reopen their embassies after severing diplomatic relations more than a decade ago, in a step that would represent a major impetus for Damascus' efforts to return to the Arab ranks.

Removing the obstacle of differences for Saudi Arabia does not mean reaching the normalization or development of relations, but rather leaves that to other factors that impose themselves according to global and regional political changes, including that the rapprochement with Iran did not prevent the continuation of tension in Yemen, where the Houthis initiated the attack on Marib to suggest They are far from the Saudi-Iranian truce.

Despite the effort to resume relations with Damascus, observers consider that this will not remove points of contention at once, and that the Saudi model in the development of relations with Turkey is not a condition. To be the final model with Iran or Syria.

Saudi Arabia had taken the initiative to send aid to Syria after the earthquake, and understood the move as a message of rapprochement, especially in light of calls on the Arab level to restore relations with Syria.

A pro-Damascus regional source said that contacts between Riyadh and Damascus gained momentum after an agreement to restore relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran, which is the main ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The restoration of relations between Riyadh and Damascus will be an important development so far in the Arab countries’ moves to normalize relations with Assad, who was boycotted by many Western and Arab countries after the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011, before Arab voices were raised calling for Syria’s return to the Arab League and the resumption of bilateral relations, which is what It increased especially after the earthquake that hit northwestern Syria.

A second regional source allied with Damascus told Reuters that the two governments were "preparing to reopen the embassies after Eid al-Fitr".

The decision came as a result of talks in Saudi Arabia with a senior Syrian intelligence official, according to a regional source and a diplomat in the Gulf.

This sudden development may indicate the role that the agreement between Tehran and Riyadh may play in other crises in the region, as the rivalry between them has fueled conflicts, including the war in Syria.

T/ Satt.

ANHA