The United Arab Emirates has invited Syrian President Bashar Assad to attend the United Nations climate summit in Dubai later this year, Syrian state media says.
Assad’s first invitation to a global summit since the start of Syria’s war in 2011 comes as the Arab world gradually warms up to Damascus after a long spell in the diplomatic wilderness.
The Emirati charge d’affaires in Syria, Abdul Hakeem al-Nuaimi, has handed Assad an invitation from UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan “to attend the COP28 climate conference,” official news agency SANA reported.
Heads of Western states that have imposed sanctions on Syria over the civil war and oppose normalization with Damascus usually attend the COP summits. US President Joe Biden and France’s Emmanuel Macron were among those who attended last year’s talks in Egypt.
The UAE reestablished ties with Syria in 2018 and has been leading the recent charge to reintegrate Damascus into the Arab fold.
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