Syrian President Bashar al-Assad met with Saudi Arabia\u2019s top diplomat in Damascus on Tuesday, state media reported, ending more than a decade of diplomatic deep-freeze between the two countries.
\n\u201cPresident Bashar al-Assad meets Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan,\u201d Syria\u2019s official news agency SANA reported.
\nThe Saudi prince arrived in Damascus on Tuesday afternoon on the first visit to Syria\u2019s capital by a Saudi official since the start of the country\u2019s civil war in 2011.
\nAssad has been politically isolated in the region since the conflict began, but a flurry of diplomatic activity has been underway in the past week as regional relations shift following a decision by Saudi Arabia and Damascus\u2019s ally Iran to resume ties.
\nThe trip comes less than a week after Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad visited Saudi Arabia, also on the first such visit since the conflict began.
\nLast week, diplomats from nine Arab countries met in the Saudi city of Jeddah to discuss ending Syria\u2019s long spell in the diplomatic wilderness and its possible return to the 22-member Arab League after Damascus was suspended in 2011.
\nThe diplomats stressed the \u201cimportance of having an Arab leadership role in efforts to end the crisis\u201d in Syria, according to a statement by the Saudi foreign ministry.
\nSaudi Arabia severed ties with Assad\u2019s government in 2012 and Riyadh had long openly championed Assad\u2019s ouster, backing Syrian rebels in earlier stages of the war.
\nSeveral other Arab countries also cut ties with Syria as some powers bet on Assad\u2019s demise.
\nBut regional capitals have gradually been warming to Assad as he has clawed back most of the territory lost to rivals, with crucial backing from Russia and Iran.
\nThe United Arab Emirates (UAE), which re-established ties in late 2018, has been leading the charge to reintegrate Damascus into the Arab fold.
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