Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani meets Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally, for the first time, in a visit to Beirut.
Shaibani’s visit comes as Damascus has insisted it does not want to intervene militarily in Lebanon, despite pressure from the United States to do so.
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly said that Syria could “take care of Hezbollah,” criticizing Israel’s strategy in its war with the Iran-backed terror group.
But Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who came to power in December 2024 after leading a coalition that toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, has stated that he has no intention of intervening or reopening old wounds.
The Syrian minister, on his second visit to Lebanon, was received on arrival by Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, before going on to meet Berri, according to local media.
The new Syrian authorities are hostile to Hezbollah, which was allied with Assad, and have announced arrests of alleged cells affiliated with the group.
Hezbollah denies having any presence in Syria.
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