Saudi Arabia to Invite Syria’s Assad to Arab League Summit in May

Moscow, April 2 (Sputnik) – Saudi Arabia is planning to invite Syrian President Bashar Assad to a summit of the League of Arab States (LAS) that Riyadh is hosting in May, Reuters reported on Sunday, citing three sources familiar with the matter.

Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud will visit Damascus “in coming weeks” to extend Assad an official invitation to the summit scheduled for May 19, the report said.

In late March, Reuters reported, citing sources, that Damascus and Riyadh had agreed to open embassies more than a decade after the severing of diplomatic ties. The Wall Street Journal also reported, citing Arab and European officials, that Arab nations that “once shunned” Assad’s government now seek to mend ties with him.

The 22-nation Arab League suspended Syria’s membership in 2011 after war broke out in the country. Several member states then recalled their ambassadors from Syria in protest of Assad’s policies, accusing his government of cracking down on protesters. Years later, some of them have begun taking steps to reengage with Damascus and reopen embassies.

Saudi Arabia severed diplomatic relations with Syria in 2012 and closed the diplomatic mission in Damascus, expelling the Syrian ambassador.