The new leader of Syria went to a meeting with the Turkish president

Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are set to meet in Ankara. The two sides are expected to discuss a joint defense pact that could include the establishment of Turkish air bases in central Syria and the training of a new Syrian army.

Earlier, al-Sharaa met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

The upcoming defense talks were reported by Reuters, citing four sources, including a Syrian security official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment.

The new pact could include the establishment of two Turkish air bases in the Badiya desert in central Syria, the sources said.

The deal would allow Turkey to use Syrian airspace for military purposes and play a leading role in training the new Syrian army (the new Syrian leadership has disbanded the army and various rebel groups and is working to unify them under a new military command).

^{Photo: Getty Images}
A spokesman for the Syrian president told Reuters that al-Shar'a would discuss with Erdogan "the training of the new Syrian army by Turkey, as well as new areas of cooperation" (it was not specified exactly what these areas were).

Turkish presidential spokesman Fahrettin Altin said on Monday that Erdogan and al-Sharra would discuss the latest developments in Syria and possible joint measures to restore the Syrian economy and achieve stability and security in the country.

Turkey, a NATO member, has long supported the armed and political opposition in Syria. Ankara is seeking to play a key role in the new Syria by filling the vacuum left by the departure of Assad's main regional ally Iran and expanding its sphere of influence. This, in turn, could lead to competition with Gulf Arab states and alarm Israel, Reuters notes.

Turkey has a significant military presence in the Idlib enclave in northwestern Syria, which has been controlled by a coalition led by al-Sharra since 2017, with Turkish military bases to its north.

In December, Turkish Defense Minister Yaşar Güler said Ankara was “ready to provide the necessary assistance if the [new] Syrian administration requests it.”

Visit to Saudi Arabia and meeting with Qatari emir

^{Ahmed al-Shar’a met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on Sunday
Bandar Algaloud / Saudi Royal Court / Handout/Anadolu}
Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Shar’a met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on Sunday, his first foreign visit.

In a written statement, Shariah said he discussed humanitarian and economic cooperation with the prince, as well as “broad plans for the future in the fields of energy, technology, education and healthcare.”

A statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency said the two discussed improving bilateral relations and regional developments.

Since the fall of the Assad regime, Shariah and other Syrian officials have sought to strengthen ties with Western and Arab leaders. Riyadh has been playing a leading role in these efforts. In early January, Saudi Arabia hosted Syria’s new foreign and defense ministers, and later in the month, meetings were held with Syrian, other Arab and Western officials.

Days before his visit to Saudi Arabia, Shariah had met with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Damascus. It was the first visit by another head of state to the Syrian capital since the ouster of Bashar al-Assad on December 8.

Sheikh Tamim stressed the need to “urgently form a government that represents all segments of the Syrian people,” the Qatari emir’s palace said in a statement.

The warming of relations with Arab leaders is a significant improvement over the situation under Bashar al-Assad, who was suspended from the Arab League for more than a decade in 2011 after the regime’s brutal crackdown on protests. Follow “Zamin” news on “Telegram”