The two Mideast powerhouses have been trying to block the rise of Islamist groups in the region for two decades. The rebel takeover in Damascus will test that approach.

A high-level delegation from Syria's transitional government visited Saudi Arabia on Thursday, marking their first foreign trip and signalling a warming of ties with the oil-rich monarchy. The team, including Syria's newly appointed Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani,

The newly appointed foreign minister in the Syrian interim administration established after the fall of Assad said he accepted an invitation from his Saudi counterpart to visit the kingdom, which would be his first official visit abroad.

A Syrian delegation led by newly appointed Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani arrived in Riyadh on Wednesday in its first official visit abroad, Syrian state news agency SANA reported, citing a foreign ministry source.

Foreign and defence ministers arrive in Riyadh as Gulf states move to embrace new rulers

On Wednesday, a Syrian delegation that included Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra, and intelligence chief Anas Khattab arrived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s capital, for the new Syrian government’s first diplomatic trip abroad.

Ministers from Syria’s transitional government held talks in Saudi Arabia on Thursday on their first foreign visit since they toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad last month. “Through this first visit in the history of free Syria,