Syria says foreign policy focused on restoring ties with Europe as Denmark reopens embassy

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said Tuesday that Syria’s foreign policy is focused on restoring relations with all European countries, including Denmark, as Copenhagen reopened its embassy in Damascus after a 14-year closure, Anadolu reports.

Shaibani held talks in Damascus with his Danish counterpart Lars Lokke Rasmussen to discuss strengthening bilateral relations and cooperation.

“Our foreign policy focuses on restoring relations with all European countries, including Denmark,” Shaibani told a joint press conference with Rasmussen, as cited by Syrian Alikhbariah TV.

He said the Syrian policy had received a positive response from European countries seeking to develop relations with Damascus.

“Denmark stood with the Syrian people in difficult moments and continues to support them in the new phase,” Shaibani said.

He added that Denmark became the first Scandinavian country to reopen a resident embassy in Damascus at ambassador level.

The Syrian minister said the two sides discussed a partnership agreement that would provide an institutional framework for cooperation in various fields, adding that Damascus and Copenhagen will sign a strategic partnership agreement during an upcoming visit to Denmark.

Direct flights between Damascus and Copenhagen will begin on Sept. 21 to strengthen links between the two countries, he said.

“Today in Syria, we speak about the future more than we speak about the past,” he added.

READ: Syrian Sovereign Fund, UAE developer sign $7B deal for major Damascus project: Report

On Israel, Shaibani said Tel Aviv’s announcement that its forces would remain in Syrian territory was “a clear declaration to entrench occupation” and undermined what he called “false security pretexts.”

“Syria holds to its absolute sovereign right to build its national army and protect its sovereignty,” he said.

A week earlier, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel would not withdraw from Mount Hermon (Jabal al-Sheikh) or the buffer zone inside Syrian territory, adding that Israeli forces would remain there.

After the fall of Bashar Assad’s regime in late 2024, Israel declared the 1974 disengagement agreement collapsed and occupied the Syrian buffer zone and other sites, including the Syrian side of Mount Hermon (Jabal al-Sheikh).

On Monday, Rasmussen reopened the Danish Embassy in Damascus after a 14-year closure.

Rasmussen said Denmark had allocated an additional $76 million this year to support early recovery, stabilization and the return of Syrian refugees, while al-Shaibani described the embassy’s reopening as the beginning of a new chapter in Syrian-Danish relations.

The Danish foreign minister also met Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa on Monday, with talks focusing on bilateral relations as well as cooperation on recovery and reconstruction to support stability in Syria.​​​​​​​

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Shaibani and Rasmussen previously met in Brussels in May, where they discussed expanding political and humanitarian cooperation and supporting stabilization efforts in Syria.

READ: Syria says Israeli actions threaten regional stability