Ammon News - Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said on Sunday that Damascus is seeking to build a “very strong strategic partnership” with the United States.

He added, however, that it still wants to maintain “an equal distance with all countries and build relations based on cooperation and openness.”

Speaking at a press conference in Manama, he confirmed that interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa will visit Washington soon.

Informed sources in Damascus told Asharq Al-Awsat that the visit aims to follow up on previous agreement between Syria and the US and that the conditions are ripe to announce a strategic partnership.

The partnership would positively impact several files, especially negotiations domestically between Damascus and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and regionally with Israel.

Shaibani said Syria has several issues it wants to discuss with the US, starting with lifting sanctions and opening a chapter in relations.

Maintaining the sanctions is no longer justified, he stressed, adding that Damascus wants to forge “a very strong partnership” with Washington.

It will also continue to extend its hand in cooperation with allies and friends in the region, added the FM.

Syria had confronted massive challenges in past and it never surrendered. It remained committed to justice, he stated, underlining the government’s commitment to bolster civil peace and impose the rule of law.

On Israel, Shaibani said Syria was handling its provocations diplomatically and out of its keenness to protect its interests without being dragged to escalation or a clash.

Sharaa’s visit to the US would a first for a Syrian president.

Wael Alwan, a researcher at Jusoor for Studies, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the visit should have been announced on the sidelines of Sharaa’s trip to New York where he attended the United Nations General Assembly in September.

However, some Syrian arrangements needed to be made and now the conditions are ready to announce the strategic partnership, he remarked.

This will be the most important step the Syrian government takes in “repositioning itself on the regional and international levels,” he went on to say.

Should they reach an agreement, it would signal the end of Syria’s alignment with what the West described as the “Axis of Evil”. Syria is no longer a source of alarm in the region, he said. On the contrary, it has become an ally in combating terrorism, ensuring security and joint Arab, Turkish and western interests that all align with Syria’s interests.

“The new Syria does not want to be part of one axis against another, but it wants to build balanced relations with everyone,” Alwan added.

US envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said last week that Sharaa would sign with US President Donald Trump in November an agreement for Syria to join the international anti-ISIS coalition that was formed in 2014.