Syrian-Israeli Meeting in Baku Discusses Israeli Military Presence in Syria

A diplomatic source in Damascus revealed a direct meeting between a Syrian official and another Israeli official on Saturday, July 12, in the Azerbaijani capital, Baku, on the sidelines of Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa's visit to Azerbaijan.

The source, who preferred not to disclose his identity, was quoted by the French news agency as saying: "A meeting was held between a Syrian official and an Israeli official on the sidelines of Al-Sharaa's visit to Baku," confirming that the Syrian President did not participate in these talks.

The source explained that the discussions focused on "the newly established Israeli military presence in Syria," referring to the areas where Israeli forces penetrated in southern Syria after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime more than seven months ago.

Despite Damascus not officially announcing any direct talks with Israel, the new Syrian authorities _since taking office last December_ have acknowledged conducting indirect negotiations between the two parties, aiming to contain the escalation after a series of Israeli airstrikes on Syrian territory and military incursions in the south.

Syria links the goal of indirect negotiations with Israel to the implementation of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement, which stipulates a cessation of hostilities and UN supervision of the demilitarized buffer zone between the two countries.

This comes after Damascus announced in July its readiness to cooperate with Washington to resume the implementation of the agreement.

Israel, on the other hand, has expressed interest in normalizing relations with Syria and Lebanon, as stated by its Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi, but Damascus considered talk of a peace agreement "premature," as reported by Syrian state television citing an official source.

Referring to the developments in the file, US Special Envoy to Syria Thomas Barrack said during a visit to Lebanon on July 7: "Dialogue between Syria and Israel has begun."

Since assuming the presidency, Al-Sharaa has affirmed that Syria does not seek escalation with its neighbors, calling on the international community to pressure Israel to stop its attacks.

It is worth mentioning that Syria and Israel remain officially at war since 1948.

During the official visit of Syrian President to Baku on Saturday, he met with his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev, where the two countries announced an agreement to start exporting Azerbaijani gas to Syria via Turkey, according to a statement issued by the Azerbaijani presidency.