Spain’s foreign minister raised his country’s flag at their Damascus embassy on Thursday more than a decade after Madrid suspended diplomatic activity and as Western countries resume ties following President Bashar al-Assad’s ouster.
Spain closed the mission in March 2012, a year after al-Assad began brutal repression of anti-government protests, triggering more than 13 years of war.
“It is an honor for me to be here in person,” Jose Manuel Albares said at the embassy, where the Spanish national anthem was played, an AFP correspondent reported.
“Raising the Spanish flag again is a sign of the hope we have for Syria’s future, of the commitment we convey to the Syrian people for a better future.”
A statement from the foreign ministry ahead of the visit said Albares would meet representatives of the new administration and of civil society.
The trip comes more than a month after the opposition ousted Assad. Top European officials, including foreign ministers from France and Germany, have made a series of visits to meet with the country’s new rulers.
Albares told public broadcaster TVE ahead of the visit that “the message that I want to send is a message of support to Syria.”
“But we also have red lines. Syria must be peaceful. Syria must be inclusive, and the rights of all must be respected, including those of women, and ethnic and religious minorities,” he added.
Albares’s trip to Syria followed a visit to neighboring Lebanon on Wednesday, where he announced a 10 million euro ($10.3 million) aid package for the country’s army, nearly two months into a ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah group.
AFP
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