Syria and Israel Hold US-Mediated Talks in Jordan to Ease Regional Tensions

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani met with Israeli intelligence officials in Jordan, according to Syrian state media, as both nations seek to de-escalate tensions following a recent Israeli attack on a Syrian airbase near the Turkish border. Syria’s Sana news agency reported, citing a diplomatic source, that the discussions were mediated by the United States and featured a “high-level Israeli delegation”. The AFP news agency noted that al-Shaibani met with Roman Gofman, the head of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency.

According to Sana, the talks concentrated on “establishing practical mechanisms to halt Israeli attacks, arrests and targeting operations” alongside “reviving negotiations for a lasting security agreement between the two sides”. The participants also addressed efforts to reduce friction between Israel and Turkiye and to prevent their regional rivalry from spilling over into Syrian territory, as reported by Sana.

The US has spent over a year attempting to broker a security agreement between Israel and the government of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa. Since the fall of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, Israel has launched numerous strikes across Syria and deployed troops into a United Nations-patrolled buffer zone within the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. An Israeli strike also targeted the Abu Duhur airbase in northwestern Idlib, with Israel claiming the action was necessary to block Turkish troop deployments at the site—a claim both Syria and Turkiye have denied.

During Sunday’s discussions, the Syrian delegation emphasized “that Syria is a sovereign state with the full right to rebuild and develop its national army and determine its alliances and partnerships in line with its national interests”, while rejecting any measures that might compromise these sovereign rights. Syria's primary goals remain an Israeli retreat to pre-overthrow positions, the full restoration of the 1974 disengagement agreement, and the reaffirmation of Damascus's sovereignty over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Israeli media characterized the talks as “positive”, noting that Israeli officials brought several conditions to the table, including preventing Turkish military activity in Syria, demilitarizing the Syrian side of the Golan Heights, ensuring the security of Syria’s Druze community, and restricting the Syrian army from acquiring specific strategic weapons systems. Meanwhile, analysts like Hassan Mneimneh from the Middle East Institute expressed skepticism regarding the likelihood of a genuine de-escalation, suggesting that the talks primarily reflect Syria's efforts to prevent the disintegration of state authority and avoid becoming a proxy battlefield for Israel and Turkiye.