JEDDAH: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was given a warm welcome at an Arab summit on Friday, winning a hug from Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince at a meeting of leaders who had shunned him for years, in a policy shift opposed by the US and other Western powers.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman shook hands with a beaming Assad as the summit got underway in Jeddah, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in attendance, turning the page on decade-long enmity that divides the region and showcasing Riyadh’s readiness to mediate in the war with Russia.

Once heavily influenced by the United States, Saudi Arabia has already taken the diplomatic lead in the Arab world, re-establishing ties with Iran, welcoming Syria back into the Arab League fold, and mediating in the Sudan conflict.

Crown Prince Mohammed said he hoped Syria’s “return to the Arab League leads to the end of its crisis,” 12 years after Arab states suspended Syria as it descended into a civil war during which over 350,000 people died.

Zelensky hails Saudi support for last year prisoners’ release, wants joint efforts to continue

Saudi Arabia would “not allow our region to turn into a field of conflicts”, he said, saying the page had been turned on “painful years of struggle”.

On the other hand, Washington has objected to any steps towards normalisation with Assad, saying there must first be progress towards a political solution to the conflict.

In his speech, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said: “I hope that it marks the beginning of a new phase of Arab action for solidarity among us, for peace in our region, development and prosperity instead of war and destruction.”

“We are holding this summit in a turbulent world,” Assad said. But “hope grows” in the light of the rapprochements between Arab states which “culminate in this summit”, he added.

Assad thanked Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman “for the great role he played and the intense efforts he exerted to promote reconciliation in our region”. He said Syria would always belong to the Arab world but called for non-interference in the internal affairs of Arab states.

The Syrian state news agency said Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani shook hands with Assad, though Qatari media did not confirm that and Sheikh Tamim abruptly left the gathering as the speeches were getting underway. A regional official said the two did not speak.

Ukraine conflict

Addressing the summit, President Zelensky, who wants to build support for Kyiv’s battle against Russian invaders, asked the delegates to support Ukraine’s formula for peace and thanked Riyadh for its role in mediating release of nearly a dozen prisoners last year.

The Ukrainian leader said he hoped joint efforts on the issue would continue. His office said: “The president thanked the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia for supporting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine,” adding that he had invited Mohammed bin Salman to visit Ukraine.

On the other hand, President Putin, in a letter to the summit, said Russia attached “great importance to the development of friendly relations and constructive partnership” with regional states.

Gulf states have tried to remain neutral in the Ukraine conflict despite Western pressure on Gulf oil producers to help isolate Russia, a fellow OPEC+ member.

On the sidelines of the summit, Zelensky also met Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohamed Shia al-Sudani, who he thanked for “Iraq’s solidarity” and its “firm position in supporting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our state”.

He also held talks with the heads of the delegations from the UAE, Oman and Kuwait, with whom he discussed his peace plan, which includes complete withdrawal of Russian troops and the restoration of Ukraine’s state borders.

The Ukrainian leader discussed issues relating to trade and investment as well as “global food security and the work of the Black Sea Grain Initiative” with the UAE delegation head.

Published in Dawn, May 20th, 2023