Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has been invited by the United Arab Emirates to the COP28 climate meeting that it will be hosting at the end of the year, potentially putting him in the same setting as Western leaders who have long opposed and reprimanded him.
After the UAE embassy in Damascus tweeted the same, the invitation was issued by UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, according to Syrian state news agency SANA.
A COP28 representative told Reuters in an email that the organization was "committed to an inclusive COP process that produces transformational solutions."
The summit in Dubai in December is anticipated to draw thousands of dignitaries and international leaders.
Following Assad's bloody assault on street protests that turned into a devastating civil war, several Arab governments are reopening their relations with Syria after more than a decade of isolation.
In the wake of the tragic earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria on February 6, bilateral diplomatic contacts intensified. Later, Syria was readmitted into the Arab League last week, and Saudi Arabia invited Assad to attend the League conference on Friday in Jeddah.
The United States remains skeptical and has stated that it does not see the benefit in Assad's re-admission to the Arab League, despite the fact that Arab nations, particularly the UAE, have aggressively tried to re-establish relations with Damascus.
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