Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Shaibani arrived at Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport heading a high-level delegation that includes Justice Minister Mazhar Al Wais, Intelligence Chief Hassan Al-Salameh, Deputy Interior Minister Major General Abdel Qader Tahan, and senior political officials.

The one-day official visit comes at the invitation of Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi and aims to discuss the reactivation of Lebanese-Syrian diplomatic relations and cooperation on a number of bilateral files.

Al-Shaybani was received at the airport by Director of Protocol at Lebanon’s Foreign Ministry Ambassador Rola Noureddine, Consul Rodrigue Khoury, and Syrian Chargé d’Affaires Ali Daghman.

The Syrian delegation will head directly to the Foreign Ministry to meet Minister Raggi, followed by meetings with President Joseph Aoun at the Baabda Palace and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam at the Grand Serail.

This marks the first visit by a senior Syrian official to Lebanon since the fall of the previous Syrian regime.