On Tuesday, the Foreign Minister of the United Arab Emirates met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus, signalling a strengthening of ties between Assad and a US-allied Arab state that once supported rebels seeking to overthrow him.
Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, the UAE’s Foreign Minister, is the highest-ranking Emirati official to visit Syria in the decade since a civil war erupted in which several Arab states backed the mainly Sunni Muslim insurgents against Assad.
The United States, which opposes efforts to normalise or rehabilitate Assad until progress is made toward a political solution to the conflict, expressed concern about the UAE’s move.
According to a statement from the Syrian presidency, the foreign minister led a delegation of senior Emirati officials who met with Syrian counterparts to discuss bilateral relations and cooperation.
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