Recent comments by Turkish and Arab leaders indicate that Bashar Assad and the Syrian regime are being rehabilitated. Last week, the United Arab Emirates foreign minister, Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, was in Damascus to meet with Assad. In October 2021, the Jordanian king, the first Arab leader to call for Assad to step down, telephoned the Syrian leader. Erdogan's comments about meeting Assad came after senior Turkish and Syrian officials had already met in Moscow. Russia, an important Syrian ally, has been heavily involved in its civil war and pushing for better relations between Turkey and Syria.

Source: Washington Post January 10, 2023 18:02 UTC