NEW YORK, January 10. /TASS/. Following the collapse of Bashar Assad’s government, Syria has turned into a political battleground between Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported.
These countries are rushing financial aid and technical assistance to the new Syrian administration to restore civilian infrastructure and electricity supply. Jordan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are also preparing to assist Syria.
Analysts interviewed by the newspaper stated that, by providing assistance to Damascus, the Arab monarchies aim to minimize the risks of new Islamist movements and the rise of terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda, Islamic State, and the Society of the Muslim Brothers (all outlawed in Russia) in Syria. Saudi Arabia’s "goal is to counterbalance" Turkey’s significant role in the new Syria, the newspaper quotes Fawaz Gerges, a professor of international relations at the London School of Economics.
"Riyadh, which lost out to Tehran in the race to exert influence in post-Saddam Hussein Iraq," is seeking to use humanitarian aid to Syria "in part as a way to counter Ankara’s moves" in the Arab republic, analysts told the WSJ. "The kingdom’s rivalry with Turkey reaches back into the Ottoman empire and into recent history during the struggle for influence in the Middle East in the fallout from the Arab Spring," the newspaper wrote.
In late November, Syria’s armed opposition launched a large-scale offensive against government forces. On December 8, they entered Damascus. Assad resigned as Syria’s president and left the country. On December 10, Mohammed al-Bashir, who had led the so-called Syrian Salvation Government in the Idlib Province, announced his appointment as head of Syria’s interim government until March 1, 2025.