Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al Shibani arrived in Algiers on Thursday, state media reported, in the first visit to Algeria by a senior Syrian official since the removal of former president Bashar Al Assad in 2024.
Algeria, a major energy exporter, supported Mr Al Assad during the Syrian civil war. However, President Ahmad Al Shara's government has sought to build ties with countries that backed the former regime as it works to solidify its domestic position and raise its profile on the world stage.
Mr Al Shibani was accompanied on the visit by intelligence chief Hussein Al Salama, Syrian state news agency Sana reported. The visit is aimed at “strengthening ties and diplomatic efforts” between the two countries.
A Syrian official told The National that the two sides will discuss the fate of Algerian extremists who fought in the Syrian civil war and are now members of Al Qaeda-linked Hurras Al Din, which has been the target of US air strikes in the past several years.
“It is in the interest of the two countries to fight extremism,” said the official. He added that “logistical co-operation” would also be discussed, including the possibility of Algeria supplying fuel to Syria and providing expertise to rebuild the country's oil and gas sector.
The Syrian government is opening diplomatic channels with even the most ardent Arab supporters of the Assad regime to make sure that no rifts remain for any enemy, “foreign or domestic”, to exploit, the official said.
Syria fell out of the orbit of Russia and Iran after the downfall of the Assad regime and quickly developed ties with the US. Washington has admitted Syria into its anti-ISIS coalition, and last year lifted most of the sanctions it imposed during the Assad regime's rule.
One of Washington's main goals in supporting Mr Al Shara's government is to convince it to strike a peace agreement with Israel. Algeria, however, is opposed to any normalisation between Arab countries and Israel.
Mr Al Shibani's visit comes a month after he visited Egypt for talks with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty. The removal of Mr Al Assad coincided with the entire Syrian security apparatus, which had ties with Cairo and Algiers, being dismantled.
Since the civil war ended, Syria has pursued a pragmatic foreign policy, even working to build ties with Russia, which backed the former regime for decades and enabled it, primarily through a sustained aerial campaign, to recover large areas of the country after initial losses in the civil war.
Mr Al Shara has made two official visits to Moscow since becoming President.
