Muted Praise for Diplomatic Ties With Lebanon

The pro-government Syrian press reported on the formalisation of diplomatic ties between Damascus and Beirut, which took place on October 15, with some caustic remarks about pro-western forces in Lebanon.



Al-Thawra newspaper’s editor-in-chief, Asad Abud, asserted that Syria had never been against having diplomatic ties but had been waiting until Lebanon had a president and government before establishing them. In an editorial published on October 15, Abud maintained that tensions between the two states were due to foreign interference, and questioned whether a diplomatic relationship would halt this.



Abud dismissed anti-Syrian Lebanese politicians aligned with the United States as “children”. He said they should not interfere in diplomacy, which should instead be left to presidents.



In an article the same day, the pro-government website Al-Jamal argued that the reason the Syrians and Lebanese had never wanted to open embassies was that they saw themselves as “one people in two countries”. Instead, he said, the call to establish diplomatic ties came from anti-Syrian, pro-western politicians in Lebanon.



The official newspaper Tishreen was more welcoming of the new diplomatic relationship, expressing hope that it would strengthen.



"Relations are improving, and we hope that the ambitions and hopes of the two peoples will be realised," editor-in-chief Issam Dari wrote.