Zelensky, Turkiye’s top diplomat in Damascus for talks with Syrian president

DAMASCUS: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Damascus alongside Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Sunday, with a senior official saying the former was scheduled to meet with Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa.

The visit follows Zelensky’s trip to Turkiye on Saturday and a Gulf tour last week against the backdrop of the war in the Middle East, where he sought to clinch security deals and exchange Ukrainian drone expertise for air defence missiles.

Zelensky announced in a Facebook post that he had arrived in the Syrian capital, saying “important meetings lie ahead”.

“Every nation and every region deserves a peaceful life,” he added.

The senior official with knowledge of the visit said “cooperation between countries” and the “security situation in the region” were on the agenda.

READ MORE: Zelensky in Istanbul for security talks with Erdogan

Syria’s official news agency SANA published pictures of Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani welcoming Zelensky and Fidan on the tarmac in the Damascus airport.

Ukraine, which is battling relentless Russian drone and missile barrages daily, urgently needs US Patriot air defence ammunition and fears supplies may sink due to the Middle East war.

Kyiv has therefore sought to leverage its expertise in countering Russian drones, similar to those Iran has used in retaliatory attacks across Gulf nations.

Last week, Zelensky visited several Middle Eastern countries and signed defence agreements with Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Russia was a key ally of al-Sharaa’s predecessor Bashar al?Assad, now exiled in Moscow, during Syria’s 14?year civil war, supporting him with airstrikes.

But the new Syrian leader, who once commanded rebels against Assad, has appeared to maintain balanced relations with Moscow.

In January, he met President Vladimir Putin and so far has not asked Russia to withdraw from its military bases on Syrian soil.