Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry speaks during an emergency
meeting of Arab League foreign ministers in Cairo. Khaled Desouki/AFP
Foreign ministers from Arab League member states have voted to reinstate Syria's membership after a suspension lasting more than a decade.
The
move is part of a regional normalization of ties with Damascus as Arab
states work toward an "Arab-led political path" to solve the Syrian
crisis.
- Syria's membership was revoked after a crackdown on protesters in 2011.
- The decision paves the way for Syria's participation in the upcoming Arab League summit in Saudi Arabia.
- The restoration of ties with Syria comes after a flurry of regional normalization of ties, including:
- Re-establishment of ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran.
- A visit of Saudi Arabia's foreign minister to Damascus for the first time in over a decade.
- Arab states have been looking to normalize ties and seek an "Arab-led political path" to solve the Syrian crisis, with Jordan's top diplomat leading the "Jordanian Initiative."
- Jordan, Kuwait, and Qatar had opposed al-Assad's presence at the Arab League summit.
- Twelve years after the 2011 uprisings, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has kept his hold on power through civilian targeting, siege tactics, and countless other war crimes.
- The U.S. said it does not plan to change its policy toward the Syrian government, which it considers a "rogue" state.
