Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad arrived in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday on the first visit to the kingdom after 12 years of severed ties.
Mekdad arrived in the Saudi city of Jeddah where he met with deputy foreign minister Waleed Al-Khuraiji, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
According to the agency, Mekdad is visiting the kingdom at the invitation of his Saudi counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah.
The two top diplomats are set to discuss efforts aimed at reaching a political solution to the crisis in Syria, which will preserve the country’s unity, security and stability, and will facilitate the return of Syrian refugees to their homeland, SPA reported.
The visit is the first by a senior Syrian official to Saudi Arabia in more than a decade after the kingdom and other Arab countries cut ties with Syria over the foreign-backed war there.
In late March, Syria and Saudi Arabia agreed to re-establish ties and reopen their embassies.
Other Arab countries, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Tunisia, have also re-established relations with Syria.