Syrian President in UAE for second post-quake Gulf visit

AFP | Dubai                                              

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com    

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad met yesterday with Emirati leaders in Abu Dhabi, his second Gulf visit since last month’s earthquake in his country prompted renewed efforts to bring Damascus back into the Arab fold.

The trip -- Assad’s second to the United Arab Emirates in as many years -- comes after a visit to Oman last month, his only official engagement in Arab countries since the start of Syria’s war in 2011.

The UAE’s president, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, greeted Assad and his wife Asma in the capital, the official news agency WAM said, before high-level meetings at the presidential palace.

“We held constructive talks aimed at developing relations between our two countries,” the Emirati president said in a statement. “Our discussions also explored ways of enhancing cooperation to accelerate stability and progress in Syria and the region,” Sheikh Mohamed added.

“The UAE’s approach and efforts towards Syria are part of a deeper vision and a broader approach aimed at strengthening Arab and regional stability,” said senior Emirati presidential adviser Anwar Gargash.

“The UAE’s position is clear regarding the need for Syria to return to” its place in the Arab world and regain legitimacy in the region, Gargash said on Twitter. “This was confirmed by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed during his meeting today” with Assad, the adviser added.

During Sunday’s meeting, Assad praised the UAE’s role in strengthening relations between Arab countries, according to a statement by the Syrian presidency. The Syrian president criticised the policy of severing of ties between Arab states as an “incorrect principle in politics,” arguing that relations should be “fraternal,” the statement said.

The UAE had pledged more than $100 million in assistance to quake-hit Syria, by far the largest sum from any single nation. It also dispatched a search and rescue team, provided thousands of tonnes in emergency relief items and provided medical treatment for Syrian quake victims in Emirati hospitals. And the UAE’s foreign minister, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, last month became the first senior Arab official to visit Syria since the quake.