Saudi Arabia wants to support Syria, says al-Sharaa

Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, landed in Saudi Arabia on Sunday for his first international trip since his rebel militant group ousted former President Bashar al-Assad in December.

After meeting Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Syria's interim president said Saudi Arabia was committed to supporting the war-torn country.

"We held a long meeting during which we felt and heard a genuine desire to support Syria in building its future," al-Sharaa said in a statement on Telegram.

The interim Syrian leader's trip to Riyadh is being widely seen as a sign of his government's interest in aligning itself more closely with the Gulf and away from Iran.

Iran spent an estimated $30–50 billion (almost €29 billion to €48 billion) in Syria to ensure the Bashar Assad regime's stability over the last thirteen years.

On the other hand, Saudi Arabia had been among the Arab nations that poured money into insurgent groups that tried to topple Bashar Assad during Syria's civil war.

However, rebels found themselves beaten back as Assad, supported by Iran and Russia, fought the war into a stalemate in Syria.

What do we know about the trip?

Al-Sharaa, who was once aligned with Islamist militant group al-Qaeda, landed in Riyadh alongside his government's foreign minister, Asaad al-Shaibani. 

The two men traveled on a Saudi jet, with the Saudi flag visible on the table behind them.

Syria's new three-star, tricolor flag flew next to Saudi Arabia's own at the airport as al-Sharaa in a suit and tie walked off the plane.

Shoring up support for lifting international sanctions on Syria is a major topic of discussion during the trip, according to Saudi media outlets. 

Syria political transition after Assad ouster

Al-Sharaa was the leader of the main militant group — Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham or HTS — that spearheaded the lightning offensive that toppled Bashar Assad in December.

Al-Sharaa was named the acting president for a transitional period earlier in the week, with the HTS group also making other changes to make way for political transition, according to Syrian state media.

Edited by: Wesley Rahn