Assad”s Surprise Visit to Saudi Arabia Breaks the Ice, Likely to have Positive Impact on Lebanon
On the eve of the launch of parliamentary consultations, a significant development popped up on the Arab political scene of importance to Lebanon — Syrian President Bashar al-Assad”s surprise visit to Saudi Arabia where he met caretaker PM Fouad Saniora on the sidelines of the inauguration ceremony of King Abdullah University of Science and Technology.
Both Assad and Saniora were attending the opening of the university in Jeddah Wednesday night.
Beirut media gave special attention to the handshake between the two leaders, which they said could indicate intent toward pursuing normalization of relations between Lebanon and Syria.
Observers, according to An-Nahar daily, believe that what happened in Jeddah came as a surprise to all parties and raised questions about the direct impact of this surprise on the course of government formation.
Prime Minister-designate kicks off five-day parliamentary consultations on Thursday.
As-Safir newspaper aslo spoke of the positive impact of a closed-door meeting on Wednesday between Saudi King Abdullah and leaders taking part in the Jeddah ceremony, including Assad, Turkish President Abdullah Gul and Jordanian Monarch Abdullah II.
It pointed to the significance of another meeting between Assad and Saudi King Abdullah shortly before midnight.
Saniora, in remarks published Thursday by an-Nahar, described as a "very good initiative" Assad”s unexpected visit to Jeddah.
He also considered that Assad”s presence in Jeddah was "an important step in strengthening Arab solidarity."
But the main question focused on knowing the reasons that made Assad participate in this event.
As-Safir, citing diplomatic sources in Ankara, pointed to the key role Turkey has played with King Abdullah II of Jordan in this respect.