Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa arrived in Riyadh on Tuesday on an official visit, where he met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and the two sides discussed bilateral relations and developments in the situation in the region, according to the Syrian News Agency (SANA).
AI-generated summary
The visit comes within the framework of efforts to rehabilitate relations between Syria and Arab countries after years of tension.
Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa arrived in Riyadh on Tuesday on an official visit, where he met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
According to the Syrian News Agency (SANA), the two sides discussed “relations between the two brotherly countries and ways to develop them in a way that serves common interests.” They also “exchanged views on the latest developments in the situation in the region, in addition to a number of issues of common interest, in a way that contributes to supporting security and stability in the region.”
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
Practical steps to normalize relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia will be announced in the coming weeks.
Likely · Within weeks

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney urged the province of Quebec to focus on immediate economic challenges such as housing, growth, infrastructure, and supporting workers affected by US tariffs, instead of waiting for a possible referendum on independence after years, after the separatist Party of Quebec returned to power, while Turkey is conducting NATO exercises to combat sea mines and the Turkish authorities are blocking 88 accounts on the X platform due to the investment funds scandal.

The Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitoring Report for 2026 showed that Syria recorded the highest number of casualties from a single country in 2025 due to cluster munition remnants, with 68 cases out of 117 globally, despite the fact that no new use of them has been recorded since the fall of the Assad regime in late 2024, while gaps in services for survivors continue and the government faces pressure to join the 2008 agreement, and in Iraq, Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi seeks to complete the ministerial formation amid disagreements within the framework. Coordination regarding the vice presidents and vacant ministries, and in Palestine, attempts are being made to form a broad coalition list to convince Marwan Barghouti to run in the upcoming legislative elections.

American and international officials criticized statements by US President Donald Trump in which he indicated that Iran might destroy American cities such as Los Angeles and San Diego, considering this a small price to pay for maintaining security, while a new defense alliance between Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey announced the deployment of military forces in the Kingdom to confront the Houthis supported by Iran, and the Saudi East-West oil pipeline was halted after a new attack.

Iran has hardened its tone towards the United States and Israel, hinting at a response to any new attack, while maintaining its readiness to negotiate its nuclear program, at a time when countries in the region continue their contacts to push dialogue between Tehran and Washington and reduce escalation, amid conflicting statements from Iranian officials about negotiations and military readiness.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah held a phone call with his Egyptian counterpart Badr Abdel-Ati to discuss coordination between Cairo and Riyadh regarding regional developments, including Iran and the security of the Red Sea and Sudan. Abdel-Ati renewed Egypt’s support for the security of Saudi Arabia and the two ministers agreed to maintain the security of navigation in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab, and to confirm support for Sudan’s unity and sovereignty amid the ongoing war since April 2023.

Political sources in Baghdad are anticipating that Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi will complete the formation of his government next week, with the decline of the American conditions that were obstructing the appointment of figures linked to the armed factions, while the ministries of Interior, Defense, Higher Education, Planning, Culture, Labor, Housing, and Displacement remain vacant, and he is competing within the “coordination framework” for positions, including the position of Deputy Prime Minister, which may go to Laith al-Khazali, and Nouri al-Maliki’s son-in-law, Yasser Sakhil, who is nominated for the Interior, amid debates over appointing deputies to the president and prime minister amid financial constraints.