Arab League set to readmit Syria eight years after expulsion

The Guardian ^ | 26 Dec 2018 | Bethan McKernan and Martin Chulov

[Cronos]

Gulf nations bloc moving to welcome Syria back into the fold after Bashar al-Assad’s brutal repression of protests

At some point in the next year it is likely Assad will be welcomed on to a stage to once again take his place among the Arab world’s leaders, sources say. Shoulder to shoulder with the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, and Egypt’s latest autocrat, General Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, the moment will mark the definitive death of the Arab spring, the hopes of the region’s popular revolutions crushed by the newest generation of Middle Eastern strongmen.

...Diplomatic sources have told the Guardian there is a growing consensus among the league’s 22 members that Syria should be readmitted to the alliance of Arab nations, although the US is pressuring both Riyadh and Cairo to hold off on demanding a vote from members.

The move comes despite Assad’s intimate ties to Iran, to whom the regime owes its survival. For Saudi Arabia and the UAE, re-embracing Syria is a new strategy aimed at pivoting Assad away from Tehran’s sphere of influence, fuelled by the promise of normalised trade relations and reconstruction money.

Both Syrian and external estimates say around $400bn (£315bn) is needed to rebuild the country, but the UN will refuse to send a penny until Assad engages with the UN peace process.

The full sum will probably never materialise and much of Syria is likely to remain in ruins – but Riyadh’s pockets are much deeper than Tehran and Moscow’s. Any forthcoming Gulf reconstruction money will be directed to areas that stayed loyal to the government throughout the war as a reward.

[Widget Jr]

Attempting to overthrow him in the name of fighting ISIS (while supporting ISIS) didn’t work, so Arab states have to accept him back.

[mac_truck]

Another positive effect from the announced departure of US troops from the country.