Saudi Arabia is taking part in talks with western powers to help remove sanctions against Syria, the kingdom's Foreign Minister said on Friday as he made his first visit to Damascus since the fall of former president Bashar Al Assad.

Syria's interim president made his first trip abroad Sunday, traveling to Saudi Arabia in a move likely trying to signal Damascus' shift away from Iran as its main regional ally. Ahmad al-Sharaa, who was once aligned with al-Qaida,

Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa held talks with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on Sunday as he embarked on his first foreign trip since taking power after the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.