The talks in Syria are in Riyadh with Western and regional participation From Reuters

By Pesha Magid

RIYADH (Reuters) – Foreign ministers and top diplomats from Western and Middle Eastern countries will meet Syria’s new foreign minister in the Saudi capital Riyadh in the first regional meeting on Sunday in Syria since President Bashar al-Assad was ousted last month.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock arrived in Riyadh on Sunday morning ahead of the meeting with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan Al-Shibani.

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy was also expected to join the talks, according to a statement issued by the UK Foreign Office.

The foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey were all in Riyadh for Sunday’s meeting more sent from the European Union and the United States. Other senior Arab and Western officials are expected to attend.

The lightning rebel offensive toppled Assad on December 8 and the Islamist rebels Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), who led the advance, established an interim government that appointed Shibani as minister of affairs Outside

“The talks in Riyadh will be led by the Arabs and will focus on the next steps the international community can take to support the interim Syrian authorities, including mechanisms to hold the Assad regime to account for the war crimes they committed. perpetrated against the Syrian people,” the British. statement said.

The meeting is the first to include both Syria’s new leaders and top Western officials and will be chaired by Saudi Arabia.

Following a meeting of top US diplomats, the United States kingdom (TADAWUL:), France, Germany and the European Union held in Syria in Rome on Thursday and a landmark meeting that Jordan hosted in December when regional players expressed concerns about the new Islamic rulers of Syria and what they have to do to achieve international recognition.

Sunday’s conference comes as Syria’s new administration urges the lifting of sanctions from the West to help international funding flow to Damascus.

In recent days, Germany, Italy and France have insisted on relaxing EU sanctions on Syria, but a final decision could only come from the entire bloc.

The United States on Monday issued a sanctions waiver for transactions with governing institutions in Syria for six months after the end of Assad’s rule to try to ease the flow of humanitarian assistance.