Saudi king due in Syria as relations improve

The Syrian capital of Damascus prepared Tuesday for the visit of Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, who is expected to stay in the country for two days, in a sign of warming ties between the nations, which analysts predict means an optimistic outcome for Lebanon.

The visit is the first of its kind since 2005, when bilateral relations went sour, over several Middle East issues, including differences on the political situation in Lebanon and the Iraqi quagmire and the Palestinian troubles.

Arrangements for the massive Saudi delegation were made by the Saudi embassy and Syria news websites have highlighted the scale of hotel reservations by the delegation, leading analysts to conclude the importance of the meet, which is expected to "revive Arab solidarity."

Lebanese government on the way

The Editor-in-Chief of Saudi's al-Watan newspaper, Jamal Khashoggi, who will be part of the media delegation, expects the Lebanese file to top the agenda of the upcoming landmark visit.

Khashoggi stressed there was no disagreement between Saudi and Syria but said the difference between the two nations was on cooperation of the issues of third parties, mainly Lebanon.

"If Syria gets closer to Saudi Arabia, which wants stability in Lebanon, automatically the kingdom of Saudi will get closer to Syria," Khashoggi told Al Arabiya.

Despite the two countries stressing they did not want to intervene in Lebanon's domestic affairs, Khashoggi expects the king's visit to contribute to the imminent announcement of a new Lebanese government, headed by leader of the March 14 party, Saad Hariri.

Khashoggi said he believed the king's visit would not have even been announced if Lebanese officials had not come close to declaring a government, the proof, he said, is the king's visit was postponed for two weeks.

"One of the conditions of the visit is to remove obstacles that face the formation of a Lebanese government." Khashoggi said, adding he expected the new government to be announced soon after or on the same day.

On the relationship with Iran, Khashoggi said the kingdom "does not have any objections to Syria's special relationship with Iran" and Saudi would not mind a relationship with Iran but without Iranian interference in the region, "just like Iranians refuse to Saudi intervention in their affairs."

If Syria gets closer to Saudi Arabia, which wants stability in Lebanon, automatically the kingdom of Saudi will get closer to Syria

Jamal Khashoggi

Cautiously optimistic

On the other hand, the editor of London's "Middle East" Tariq Hamid says expectations of the visit's effects on Palestinian and Lebanese affairs should be lowered despite the positive atmosphere prevailing in the region currently.

Hamid, who will travel on Wednesday to Syria, said that both Syria and Saudi Arabia have said they would not interfere in Lebanese affairs directly. Hamid believes that relations between the countries need more support and documentation, "especially since their relations are known to have been cold since 2005." He added that the visit will strengthen the Arab front in general especially with the recent regional and international changes.

Although the meeting is between Saudi Arabia and Syria, Hamid does not rule out an improvement in relations between Egypt and Syria. Hamid told Al Arabiya that Egyptian officials have had a "different tone" in recent times.

Hamid refused to talk about "compromises" made by one party to another saying that "the price had already been paid" and that "the Arab front has been activated in the face of recent international challenges, especially in light of the increasing risk of a military strike against Iran."

Unofficial Arab reports raised the possibility that Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Lebanese President Michel Suleiman could join the Syrian-Saudi summit.

The kingdom's official statement said the visit "will examine the bilateral relations between the two brotherly countries and the situation on the Arab and international arenas."

The two leaders have met more than once, since the Saudi monarch took the initiative, at the Kuwaiti summit, to turn the page on inter-Arab differences. Assad's visit to Saudi Arabia, to participate in the opening of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, on Sept. 23, gave new hope to improving relations between the two countries.

According to media sources Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah is accompanied on his visit by the Minister of Intelligence, Prince Muqrin bin Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Culture and Information, Abdul Aziz Khoja, the Labor Minister Ghazi al-Gosaibi, advisor to his Majesty the Prince Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah.

The Saudi monarch will visit the cities of Damascus, Aleppo and Latakia to attend the celebrations of the October War, said Syrian newspaper "Al-Watan." The visit is set to last for two days.

The Arab front has been activated in the face of recent international challenges, especially in light of the increasing risk of a military strike against Iran

Tariq Hamid