Arab League readmits Syria as relations with Assad normalize

CAIRO, May 7 (Reuters) – The Arab League readmitted Syria on Sunday after more than a decade of suspension, cementing a regional push to normalize ties with President Bashar al-Assad.

The decision said that Syria could resume its participation in Arab League meetings immediately, while calling for a resolution of the crisis resulting from Syria’s civil war, including the flight of refugees to neighboring countries and drug smuggling. in the region.

While Arab states, including the United Arab Emirates, have pushed for the rehabilitation of Syria and Assad, others, including Qatar, have remained opposite to full normalization without a political solution to the Syrian conflict.

Some have been willing to set conditions for Syria’s return, with Jordan’s foreign minister saying last week that the re-acceptance of Syria by the Arab League, which remains under Western sanctions, would be just the beginning of “a very long, difficult and challenging process.”

“The restoration of Syria does not mean the normalization of relations between the Arab countries and Syria,” Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit told a news conference in Cairo on Sunday. “This is a sovereign decision that each country must make.”

A Jordanian official said Syria would have to show it was serious about seeking a political solution, as this would be a precondition for pushing for the lifting of Western sanctions, a crucial step in financing reconstruction.

CAPTAGON

Sunday’s decision said Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt and the Arab League secretary general would form a ministerial group to liaise with the Syrian government and seek solutions to the crisis through reciprocal measures.

The practical measures included continued efforts to facilitate the delivery of aid in Syria, according to a copy of the decision seen by Reuters.

Syria’s readmission follows a Jordanian initiative that sets out a roadmap to end the Syrian conflict that includes addressing the issues of refugees, missing detainees, drug smuggling and Iranian militias in Syria.

Jordan is both a destination and a main transit route to the oil-rich Gulf countries for captagon, a highly addictive amphetamine produced in Syria.

Syria’s membership in the Arab League was suspended in 2011 after the crackdown on street protests against Assad that led to civil war. Several Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, have begun backing rebel groups fighting to oust Assad from power.

Assad later regained control of much of Syria with the help of his main allies Iran and Russia, but the war cost hundreds of thousands of lives and led millions to flee the country. Syria remains fragmented with its economy in shambles.

Recently, the Arab states have been trying to reach a consensus on whether to invite Assad to a arab league summit on May 19 in Riyadh to discuss the pace and conditions for normalizing ties.

Responding to a question about whether Assad could participate, Aboul Gheit told reporters: “If you want, because Syria, starting tonight, is a full member of the Arab League.”

“When the invitation is sent by the host country, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and if he wishes to participate, he will participate,” he added.

Saudi Arabia has long resisted restoring relations with Assad, but said after its recent rapprochement with Iran, Syria’s key regional ally, a new approach was needed with Damascus.

Washington, which labels Assad’s Syria a “rogue” state, has urged Arab states to get something for engaging with Assad.

Reporting by Aidan Lewis Editing by Omar Abdel-Razek

Our standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.