Syrian President Bashar al-Assad arrived today (Saturday) for his first state visit to the United Arab Emirates since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war 11 years ago.
Assad was warmly received by a host of local leaders, who expressed a willingness to warm up relations with Syria.
Assad met with the ruler of Dubai, Muhammad bin Rashid al-Maktoum, and the heir to the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Muhammad Muhammad bin Zayed al-Nahian.
Al-Nahiani told Assad that "Syria is a major pillar of the Arab world and the UAE is determined to strengthen ties with it."
The visit of the Syrian ruler, who was treated like a leper in the Sunni Arab world during the bloody civil war years in his country, can be seen as a signal from Abu Dhabi to Washington that she is dissatisfied with the administration's attitudes towards it.
Earlier this month, it was reported that al-Nahiani had refused to receive calls from his country's president, Biden, regarding the crisis in Ukraine, because he was outraged at Biden's slow response to the Houthi drone strikes by his countrymen.
In the United States as expected they expressed outrage at the visit and condemned it.
A statement from US Secretary of State Tahmed stated that his country was "deeply disappointed" by Assad's visit to the country and that the man and his regime did not deserve to be re-accepted as part of the Arab world.
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