Syria Today | Saudi ambassador arrives in Damascus

Saudi ambassador arrives in Damascus

Saudi Arabia’s new ambassador to Syria, Abdullah Bin Abdul-Aziz al-Eifan, arrived in Damascus on August 25.

Saudi Arabia recalled its ambassador to Syria, Ali al-Qahtani, in March 2008 after accusing Damascus of meddling in Lebanese affairs and preventing the election of a new Lebanese president. Relations between the two countries had already taken a sharp nosedive following the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, a close Saudi ally, in February 2005. Syria was widely blamed for Hariri’s death, an allegation it has always denied.

Eifan, former ambassador to South Korea, was appointed and approved by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in July this year. The arrival comes as part of a warming of relations between the two countries which began at the start of the beginning of the year, widely seen as linked to an international effort to re-embrace Syria.

Before arriving at Damascus Airport, Eifan stressed the importance of relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia at bilateral and regional levels, Syria’s state news agency SANA reported.

Despite the arrival of the new ambassador, reports of a stalled rapprochement between Damascus and Riyadh have circulated in the Arab press. The latest claims came from Lebanon in mid-September, when the Arabic-language daily newspaper As-Safir claimed the lack of communication between Syria and Saudi Arabia was impeding the formation of a new Lebanese cabinet. Both Syria and Saudi Arabia hold influence over different Lebanese political factions.