The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement on Wednesday declaring that “negotiations with Syria are ongoing.”
The statement added that the outcome of these negotiations depends on safeguarding Israel’s interests, which include, among other things, the disarmament of southwestern Syria and ensuring the safety and security of the Druze community in Syria, according to Yedioth Ahronoth.
اضافة اعلان
Sources familiar with the talks said that Syria, under U.S. pressure, is accelerating the pace of negotiations with Israel over a security agreement. Damascus hopes such an agreement will lead Tel Aviv to return territories it recently seized, though the discussions remain far from constituting a comprehensive peace treaty.
Last Sunday, Netanyahu stated that progress had been made toward a security agreement with Syria, but that concluding a deal was not imminent.
For his part, Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa told the UN General Assembly that “Syria is regaining its rightful place among the nations of the world.”
Al-Sharaa criticized Israel in his speech, saying it had not ceased threatening his country since the ouster of former President Bashar al-Assad last December, adding that its policies “contradict the international community’s support for Syria and its people,” posing risks to the region and potentially leading to conflicts whose outcomes no one can predict.
The Syrian president reiterated his country’s commitment to the 1974 Disengagement Agreement with Israel and called on the international community to stand by Syria in the face of these dangers, while respecting its sovereignty and territorial integrity.
