King Abdullah’s much anticipated visit to Damascus is expected to take place this week.
Last month, Syrian President Bashar Assad traveled to Saudi Arabia to attend the opening ceremony of a new high-tech university, which had been a personal pet project of the King’s. There, President Assad extended an invitation for the King to come to Damascus.
The relationship between the two counties has been strained in recent years due to Syria’s suspected involvement in the assassination of Rafik Hariri, a former Prime Minister of Lebanon with close ties to Riyadh.
Both nations wield significant influence in Lebanon, and their reconciliation could relieve the political deadlock that has plagued the country since their falling out. The friction between the two is seen as a key reason for Lebanon’s lack of progress in forming a government.
Lebanon has been without a governing cabinet since the June 7 parliamentary elections, where Saad Hariri’s March 14 coalition won the majority.
Lebanon’s President Michel Suleiman is expected to participate in the meetings, which could make the events more productive from a Lebanese standpoint.
There are also reports of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak possibly joining the meeting. Mubarak’s presence would deepen the summit’s historic feel, hearkening back to the days when Nasr’s Egypt wielded tremendous influence in the region’s affairs.
Two of Lebanon’s most heated rivals, Prime Minister Saad Hariri and former General Michael Aoun are expected to meet for lunch today in Beirut on the subject of cabinet formation, but very little progress is expected to come until after the Saudi-Syrian summit.
The summit might also signal a loosening of Syrian-Iranian ties, a relationship that the West has been trying to unravel for years. The possibility of Saudi investment dollars flooding Assad’s beleaguered nation could be extremely persuasive in that regard. Perhaps this is the first step toward the Syria-Iran-Lebanon triangle being replaced by the Saudi-Syria-Lebanon triangle.
Though the degree of foreign influence that plagues Lebanon is not desireable by any nation, one must chose the lesser of two evils in this instance. If Iran is the odd man out and Saudi Arabia steps in, then at least the cooperation between Syria and Saudi Arabia could lead to an effective government being formed.
This is probably the best possible scenario for the people of Lebanon, because then and only then, with an effective government, will they be able to see significant progress in their great nation.
