Syria, Saudi Arabia sign defence deal, agree on $403m in loans — Pajhwok

KABUL (Pajhwok): Syria and Saudi Arabia have signed a defence cooperation agreement, while the Saudi Fund for Development has agreed to provide more than $403 million in loans to support Syria’s energy, housing, health and infrastructure sectors. The agreements were signed on Wednesday in Riyadh during a meeting between Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. It was al-Sharaa’s second visit to the Saudi capital in less than a month, Al Jazeera reported. Syria’s Foreign Ministry described the agreement between the two countries’ defence ministries as the most notable of the deals but did not disclose its terms. The agreement came days after Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said his government was considering joining a mutual defence pact involving Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan. “Discussions are currently under way to evaluate Syria’s entry into the Mecca alliance,” al-Shaibani said on Saturday at the Manama Dialogue, a security conference in Bahrain. Saudi Arabia has sought defensive and offensive military support from the United States and several European and Middle Eastern countries amid renewed fighting with the Houthis in Yemen. The group has attacked Saudi airports and oil facilities while fighting forces aligned with Yemen’s internationally recognised government for control of the country. In a statement on X, Syria’s Foreign Ministry said al-Sharaa and Prince Mohammed had discussed…