India set to host Arab ministers, all eyes on Syria

AAssemblage of strange ministers of arabian conference states to be hosted by bharat at the end of this month is being closely watched for the expected participation of Syria, marking the first contact at the ministerial level between New Delhi and the government led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.This will be only the second ministerial meeting of the Arab-India Cooperation Forum, created to boost cooperation with the 22-member Arab League. The first meeting was held in 2016 and plans for a second meeting in January 2019 fell through because of scheduling issues and lack of cohesion among the Arab states.The ministerial meeting, to be held in New Delhi during January 30-31, will be accompanied by a business forum being organised by the newly created India and Arab Countries Chamber of Commerce Industry and Agriculture. About 15 foreign ministers of Arab countries are expected to attend the meeting, the people said on condition of anonymity.Among those expected to attend is Syrian foreign minister Asaad Hasan al-Shaybani, and if his visit goes ahead, it will mark the first contact at the ministerial level between New Delhi and Damascus since the formation of the government led by former Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) leader Ahmed al-Sharaa. A middle-ranking Indian diplomat travelled to Damascus in mid-2025 for meetings with Syrian ministers, the first such visit from the Indian side since al-Sharaa assumed office as President.The meeting is also being held against the backdrop of a growing divide between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) over the situation in Yemen. In December, Saudi forces struck an Emirati shipment of weapons and equipment meant for the Southern Transitional Council (STC) in Mukalla port and backed an offensive that led to the UAE’s withdrawal from Yemen. In recent months, Saudi Arabia has also moved closer to Pakistan and Turkiye on key issues related to West Asia, while the UAE has forged closer ties with Israel.UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed visited India on Monday for talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the two sides agreed on finalising a strategic defence partnership and a 10-year agreement for supply of 0.5 million tonnes of LNG per year. Modi and MBZ, as the UAE leader is popularly known, also set a target for doubling bilateral trade to $200 billion over the next six years.The people said the level of the participation by the UAE and Saudi Arabia at the upcoming meeting was still not clear and a decision may be made closer to the dates.India has observer status with the Arab League, with the envoy in Cairo designated as the permanent representative to the grouping. On January 15, minister of state for external affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh met Arab League secretary general Ahmed Aboul Gheit in Cairo and discussed the second India-Arab foreign ministerial meeting. Singh said on social media that he also discussed India’s political, economic and cultural engagement with the Arab League.