Secretary of State John Kerry visited HRH King Salman and top Saudi officials in Riyadh over the weekend to discuss coordination in Syria, according to reports.
Reuters reports that the United States and Saudi Arabia agreed to increase support to Syria’s moderate opposition while seeking a political resolution of the four-year conflict, the U.S. State Department said after Secretary of State John Kerry met King Salman on Saturday.
“They pledged to continue and intensify support to the moderate Syrian opposition while the political track is being pursued,” according to Reuters, which cited a State department statement. The two leaders also discussed latest developments in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the SPA reported.
Secretary of State John Kerry met with King Salman and separately with both Crown Prince Mohammad bin Nayef and Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The visit comes on the heels of high-level meetings in Europe with key stakeholders in the Syria crisis. Secretary Kerry met with Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir in Vienna on Friday, then held a trilateral meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Al-Jubeir and Turkish Foreign Minister Sinirlioglu, according to the State Department, before meeting separately with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov and holding a meeting with all three foreign ministers – Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Russia.
The Vienna talks, “failed to make any breakthrough,” and Secretary Kerry has indicated that he hopes to convene another meeting as early as October 30.
