Saudi-Syria patch-up bid aims to bolster Arab unity

Beirut: Saudi Arabia's steps to end its bitter dispute with Syria appear to be aimed at unifying Arabs against a trio of growing concerns - Iran's spreading influence in the region, the uncertainties of a US drawdown in Iraq, and the prospect of a right-wing government in Israel.

Saudi outreach follows Washington's tentative re-engagement with Damascus, a move that diplomats hope will have more success in weaning Syria away from its Iranian ally than the Bush administration's policy of isolation.

"The Saudis want to get Syria away from Iran," says Andrew Tabler, a Syria expert at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

"Washington's style is to try engagement as well, so the Arabs are trying their best to get Syria on board."

After a month of shuttle diplomacy, Saudi King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz, Syrian President Bashar Al Assad, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, and Kuwaiti Emir Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah were to meet for a fence-mending summit in Riyadh on Wednesday.

The rift between Syria and Saudi Arabia followed the assassination in 2005 of Rafik Hariri, a Lebanese former prime minister who was close to the Saudi Arabia's ruling family.

The Syrian regime remains a leading suspect in the assassination, although it denies involvement.

The Bush administration, angered by Syrian meddling in Iraq and support for anti-Israel groups such as Hamas, imposed sanctions and froze ties with Damascus in 2005.

In response, Syria strengthened its relationship with Iran and sat out President Bush's final term.

The result - an Arab world split between Western-backed states (Saudi Arabia and Egypt) and allies of Iran (Syria, Lebanon's Hezbollah, and Palestinian Hamas).

Relations between Egypt and Syria have also been cold, the result of tension between Cairo and Tehran.

Arab fears of Iranian expansionism were compounded by recent unrest by Shiites in the Gulf. In December and January, Shiites rioted in Bahrain following the arrest of several Shiites on terrorism charges. In January, Saudi Shiites launched rare demonstrations after an altercation between police and Shiite worshippers in Medina.

The unrest does not appear to have been stirred by Iran, but does serve to warn Bahrain and Saudi Arabia that marginalised Shiites could provide an opening for Iranian penetration.

However, a return to traditional diplomacy by the Obama administration appears to have encouraged Saudi Arabia to bridge the rift with Syria.

At an economic summit in Kuwait in January, King Abdullah invited the Syrian and Egyptian leaders to a lunch at his private residence. That ice-breaker was followed by reciprocal visits by the Saudi and Syrian foreign ministers that paved the way for the Riyadh summit.

"I do think that one of the reasons Saudi Arabia wanted to patch up with Damascus is that it realised that there was no sense in pursuing a policy that had repeatedly failed since 2006, being on bad terms with Damascus," says Sami Moubayed, a Syrian political analyst.

Even Egypt appears to have swallowed its anger at Syria, recognising that Damascus has influence over the Palestinian unity talks under way in Cairo.

"Egypt knows very well that for the Cairo dialogue to succeed it will need the goodwill of Syria," says Ousama Safa, director of the Lebanese Centre for Policy Studies.

Last week, Jeffrey Feltman, acting US assistant secretary of State for Near Eastern affairs met with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Mouallem, the first visit to Syria by senior US officials in four years. Feltman described the meeting as "constructive" and paving way for future talks.