Syrian president calls Jordan’s king amid civil war strain

Syrian President Bashar Assad called Jordan’s King Abdullah II on Sunday, the first conservation between the two leaders amid a decade-long civil war in Syria, the Associated Press reported. 

The leaders discussed improving relations between the two countries, according to Syria’s news agency SANA and Jordan’s royal court.

Jordan, like many other Middle East countries, reduced diplomatic relations with Syria following the start of their civil war in 2011. During the course of the war, Jordan has hosted western-backed opposition groups and taken in thousands of Syrian refugees.

The call between Assad and Abdullah is the latest sign of a thaw in relations.

Syria’s defense minister visited Jordan last month. and a 10-year old deal to transport Egypt’s natural gas through Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon was recently revived as well. 

Jordan also fully reopened their main border crossing with Syria after closing it amid COVID-19 restrictions and security concerns along Syria’s southern border.

Western countries have blamed Assad for conducting deadly crackdowns on protesters and a brutal civil war that has left millions dead or displaced. Syria continues to face sanctions from the U.S. and other allied countries.

The civil war changed course in 2015 after Russian authorities threw their military weight behind Assad.