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Saudi, US Ministers of Defense Discuss Regional, Int’l Developments

Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman discussed with his US counterpart Lloyd Austin friendly ties (SPA)
Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman discussed with his US counterpart Lloyd Austin friendly ties (SPA)
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Saudi, US Ministers of Defense Discuss Regional, Int’l Developments

Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman discussed with his US counterpart Lloyd Austin friendly ties (SPA)
Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman discussed with his US counterpart Lloyd Austin friendly ties (SPA)

Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman has discussed with his US counterpart Lloyd Austin the latest regional and international developments.

During a meeting at the US Department of Defense in Washington on Wednesday, the two officials reviewed the strategic partnership in the military and defense sectors and ways to strengthen and enhance it.

They highlighted the leading regional and international roles of Saudi Arabia and the US in achieving global peace and security, and discussed several topics of common interest.

Saudi Ambassador to the US Princess Reema bint Bandar bin Sultan, Chief of General Staff Lt-Gen Fayyad bin Hamed al-Ruwaili, Assistant Minister of Defense for Executive Affairs Khalid al-Bayari, Director General of the Office of Minister of Defense Hisham bin Abdulaziz bin Saif, and the Military Attaché at the Saudi embassy in Washington and Ottawa Brig. Gen. Salman bin Awad Al-Harbi attended the meeting.

It was also attended from the US side by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Lt-Gen Charles Brown, Senior Military Assistant to the Secretary of Defense Lt-Gen Ronald Clark, Special Assistant Secretary of Defense for Policy Brian Seagraves, Director of the Office of the Secretary of Defense Kelly Magsamin, and the Military Attaché at the US embassy to the Kingdom Brig. Gen. Richard Quirk.

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Syria's New Rulers Urge US to Lift Sanctions During Visit to Doha

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani, meets Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Doha, Qatar, January 5, 2025. (SANA/Handout via Reuters)
Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani, meets Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Doha, Qatar, January 5, 2025. (SANA/Handout via Reuters)
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Syria's New Rulers Urge US to Lift Sanctions During Visit to Doha

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani, meets Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Doha, Qatar, January 5, 2025. (SANA/Handout via Reuters)
Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani, meets Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Doha, Qatar, January 5, 2025. (SANA/Handout via Reuters)

Syria's new rulers said on Sunday that US sanctions on Syria were an obstacle to the war-torn country's rapid recovery and urged Washington to lift them during a visit by Syrian officials to Qatar.

"These sanctions constitute a barrier and an obstacle to the rapid recovery and development of the Syrian people who await services and partnerships from other countries," Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani told reporters after meeting with Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, who also serves as foreign minister.

"We reiterate our calls for the United States to lift these sanctions, which have now become against the Syrian people rather than what they previously were: imposed sanctions on the Assad regime," he said.

Shibani, on his second foreign trip less than a month after former President Bashar al-Assad was ousted by opposition factions on Dec. 8, said that Qatar will be a partner in the new phase in Syria.

Doha had not normalized ties with Assad over his government's violent response to 2011 protests and backed the opposition instead.

Shibani, who was joined by Syrian Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra and Head of Intelligence Anas Khattab, met with other senior Qatari officials including Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mohammed Al-Khulaifi, a Qatari official told Reuters earlier.

Shibani presented the Qataris a clear roadmap for the near future in Syria and steps that would be taken by the new Syrian administration, Al-Khulaifi told reporters after the meeting.

"We are working together to prevent any foreign interference in Syrian affairs," Al-Khulaifi added.

Shibani said the roadmap is meant to "rebuild our country, restore its Arab and foreign relations, enable the Syrian people to obtain their civil and basic rights, and present a government that the Syrian people feel it represents them and all their components."

He is expected to also visit the United Arab Emirates and Jordan this week to "support stability, security, economic recovery and build distinguished partnerships," according to his account on X.

Shibani embarked on his first foreign trip to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday where Saudi officials discussed how best to support Syria's political transition.