TUNIS, April 13 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Tunisia and Syria decided to reopen their respective embassies to resume diplomatic ties between the two countries, the Tunisian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Wednesday.
“Following the initiative undertaken by President Kais Saied to appoint a Tunisian ambassador to Syria, the Syrian side gave their approval to this appointment,” reads a ministry statement.
“The Syrian side also decided to reopen its embassy in Tunis, and to designate an ambassador immediately,” it added.
The two countries’ foreign ministers will continue consultation and coordination to restore Tunisian-Syrian relations to their normal state.
According to the statement, the two sides will work to consolidate the fraternal ties which unite Tunisia and Syria, and to defend the values of solidarity between them.
Tunisia severed its diplomatic relations with Syria in February 2012 after the Syrian civil war broke out.
The rapprochement is the latest example of an Arab country reaching out once more to Syria, which has long been shunned internationally following the Damascus regime’s brutal clampdown on anti-government protests in 2011 and the fully fledged civil war that ensued.
Perhaps the biggest recent factor giving this process fresh impetus was Arab leaders increasingly offering support following February’s devastating earthquake in Syria and Turkey.
But even before that, in 2018, the United Arab Emirates restored ties, and Oman did so this year. Both countries have received visits from Syrian President Bashar Assad, despite the fact that they backed fighters trying to oust him from office.
Last month, Saudi Arabia said it was in discussions with Syria about restarting consular services.
Nine Arab countries are set to meet in Saudi Arabia later this week to discuss moves to end Syria’s more than 10 years of isolation, with the Arab League, which suspended Syria in 2011, expected to hold a summit in Riyadh in May.
