The foreign minister of Syria's interim government has visited Saudi Arabia and Qatar in a bid to establish new diplomatic relations.

Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad Al Shibani held talks with his counterpart in Saudi Arabia and the kingdom's defence minister during the Syrian interim government's first international trip, as it seeks to build alliances and bolster its regional standing during a crucial transition period.

On Wednesday, a Syrian delegation that included Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra, and intelligence chief Anas Khattab arrived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s capital, for the new Syrian government’s first diplomatic trip abroad.

Syria's new government has met with their Gulf neighbours UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia in a bid to strengthen relations. Meanwhile, they are requesting the lifting of Western sanctions to rebuild the war-torn country. For in-depth analysis and a deeper perspective, FRANCE 24's Oliver Farry welcomes Galip Dalay, Senior Consulting Fellow of the Turkey Initiative in the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Chatham House.

The media’s systematic non-reporting is not just academic. It has very real consequences. The lack of scrutiny and public debate about Britain’s clandestine intervention allowed Britain a relatively free hand in Syria, with all the dire consequences this produced — see the prescient warning from the two former Nato secretary-generals above.

Years of civil war and recent natural disasters have left Syrians greatly in need of humanitarian aid, and international relief flights have begun delivering assistance.

Shibani, visits Saudi Arabia, the first foreign trip by Syria’s new leadership following their rise to power last month.

Saudi Arabia has provided humanitarian aid worth $856.9M by the end of 2024, according to Saudi Press Agency - Anadolu Ajansı

Syria's foreign minister has told Saudi Arabian officials that the new leadership in Damascus wants to set up a government involving all parts of Syrian society following the overthrow of Bashar Al-Assad last month.

Protesters in Syria have held a sit-in demanding justice for four activists who were forcibly disappeared in 2013 and whose fate remains one of the most haunting mysteries of the country’s 13-year civ

France’s foreign minister, who is in Damascus with his German counterpart, said Friday there is “real hope” for Syria, “but it is a fragile hope.”