Historic Syria-Iraq Meeting Marks New Chapter in the Middle East
Moving beyond years of crisis and mistrust in the Middle East, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi held a historic meeting aimed at increasing cooperation and rebuilding bilateral relations. The summit was held yesterday on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, a major international forum in the United States. It was the first formal meeting between the leaders of the two neighbouring countries since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government in late 2024.
According to Syria’s state news agency SANA and a statement from the Iraqi prime minister’s office, the two leaders discussed strengthening political and security coordination between the two countries, expanding economic ties and promoting regional peace. Both leaders pledged to work together to strengthen border security, prevent human trafficking and combat ISIS (ISIL).
US Role and Geopolitical Equations
Despite recent tensions between the two countries, Baghdad and Damascus are moving towards normalising relations amid US mediation and growing regional tensions. The United States publicly welcomed the meeting in New York. Tom Barrack, the US special envoy for Syria and Iraq, said the new joint initiative between the two countries could play an important role in stability and economic progress across the Middle East.
In recent months, there has been visible progress in bilateral security cooperation, including the transfer of thousands of ISIS members held in Syria back to Iraq. At the same time, after the Iran war disrupted energy supplies through the Strait of Hormuz, Iraq opened a new route for oil exports through Syria’s Baniyas port as an alternative. This has given the economic relationship between the two countries a new dimension.
