Syria’s FM pays Pakistan first visit in 19 years amid new regional alignments

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani is paying his office's first visit to Pakistan in nearly two decades after Islamabad, Ankara and Riyadh signed a joint defense pact.

Beatrice Farhat

Aug 20, 2026

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Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani met on Thursday with his Pakistani counterpart, Muhammad Ishaq Dar, as the two sides seek to deepen their ties amid emerging regional realignments.

What happened: During their meeting, the first official visit to Islamabad by a top Syrian diplomat in 19 years, Shibani and Dar reaffirmed their countries' long-standing “brotherly” relations and agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation in various areas of mutual interest, a Pakistani Foreign Ministry statement said.

The two officials also reviewed the latest regional and international developments, including in the Palestinian territories, the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, Afghanistan and South Asia.

Dar........

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