Arab states on Sunday voted to reinstate Syria’s membership in the Arab League after 12 years of suspension following the outbreak of the country’s civil war. The decision came after a general consensus among the member states.
“We do not believe that Syria merits readmission to the Arab League at this time, and it’s a point that we’ve made clear with all of our partners,” US Department of State Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters.
Patel stressed that the US has a number of goals with their partners in the region which include a solution to the Syrian crisis, in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2254, which was adopted in 2015 calling for a ceasefire and political settlement in Syria.
“We will not normalize our relations with the Assad regime,” Patel said, referring to Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad.
“We do not support our allies and partners in doing so either,” he added.
On Monday, the European Union’s lead spokesperson for external affairs Peter Stano, told reporters that the body will assess the Arab League’s decision and its implications this week.
Stano said that EU foreign policy chief Josep Borell will hold talks “with the partners in the region to see the reasons for this decision or expectations from this decision.”
Arab nations broke off relations with Syria over Damascus’ crackdown on protests that grew into a civil war in 2011. Gulf countries, with Saudi Arabia in particular, supported the rebels while Riyadh’s regional rival, Iran, backed Assad.
The spokesperson of Qatar’s foreign ministry on Sunday stated that Doha’s position regarding normalization with President Bashar al-Assad’s regime is unmoved; however, they will not become an obstacle in front of Damascus’s return.
On May 1, Jordan hosted a regional summit attended by the foreign ministers of Syria, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Iraq, aimed at reaching a political solution for the region’s relations with Damascus. The landmark summit marks the Syrian government’s first meeting with groups of Arab countries since 2011.
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