Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani arrives in Qatar for talks
Al Jazeera
Asaad al-Shaibani’s visit to Qatar comes as the new administration seeks support from Arab states.
Syria’s newly appointed Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani has arrived in Qatar as part of his regional trip to seek support for the new government that came to power after the toppling of President Bashar al-Assad last month.
Syrian official news agency SANA confirmed the arrival of the delegation on Sunday, which includes the country’s Defence Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra and head of intelligence Anas Khattab.
Al-Shaibani is expected to meet Qatari officials on his first trip to the Gulf state. The visit comes nearly two weeks after Qatar’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mohammed al-Khulaifi travelled to Damascus to hold talks with officials from the new administration.
Al-Khulaifi’s trip had come days after Doha opened its embassy in Damascus after 13 years. Qatar did not join other Arab states in recognising al-Assad, who has taken asylum in Russia since fleeing the country on December 8. He has been accused of committing war crimes against his own citizens.
Syria’s new government is eager for investment from wealthy Gulf states to help rebuild the country’s infrastructure and boost the economy, shattered by more than a decade of war.
