Syria Responds to Israeli Security Proposal amid Progress in London Talks

London – A well-informed source revealed that Damascus has submitted its response to the Israeli proposal regarding a new security agreement between the two sides, during a trilateral meeting held in the British capital, London, on Wednesday, according to Axios.

The source explained that the meeting, which brought together Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, Syrian Foreign Minister Assad Al-Shaibani, and U.S. envoy Tom Barak, lasted five hours and witnessed “significant progress” in the negotiations. This was the third such meeting in a series of trilateral talks sponsored by the United States.

Statements from Damascus
In parallel, Syrian President Ahmad Al-Shara affirmed on Wednesday that Washington is “not exerting pressure” on his country to reach an agreement with Israel. He added in remarks to journalists that the security talks “may yield results in the coming days,” emphasizing that any potential agreement must ensure respect for Syrian airspace and territorial integrity and must be overseen by the United Nations.

Al-Shara stressed that a security agreement is “essential at this stage,” but clarified that the issue of “peace and normalization is not currently on the table.”

Background
Through the ongoing talks, Damascus seeks to halt Israeli airstrikes and secure the withdrawal of Israeli forces that advanced into southern Syria following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime last December.

It is worth noting that Syria and Israel have officially been in a state of war since 1948, despite intermittent periods of calm. Israel violated the 1974 Disengagement Agreement by advancing into the buffer zone late last year, bringing its forces within just 20 kilometers of Damascus.