Diplomatic breakthrough? Syria and Israel in Azerbaijan!

Diplomatic breakthrough? Syria and Israel in Azerbaijan!

In a significant diplomatic move, Syrian government official Vice President al-Sharaa met with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Baku on July 13, 2025. During the meeting, gas supplies to Syria were agreed, which is seen as another measure to strengthen the Syrian economy. What is striking is that al-Sharaa did not attend the parallel meeting with the Israeli representative, indicating the tense relationship between the two countries.

The Syrian interim government agreed to work with the United States to revive a ceasefire agreement originally reached with Israel in 1974. The conflict between Syria and Israel is closely linked to the Golan Heights, a strategically important area that Israel has occupied since the 1973 Yom Kippur War. In that conflict, Syria tried in vain to retake the territory, leading to a decades-long dispute.

The long shadow of conflict

Tensions have existed between Syria and Israel since the 1974 agreement between the two countries. This agreement included a troop disengagement agreement and the UN's establishment of a buffer zone in the Golan Heights. The mission of this force, known as UNDOF, is to secure the ceasefire between the two states. UNDOF was founded after the Yom Kippur War and has operated in the region for 35 years.

Given that the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024 led to a surge in Israeli airstrikes in Syria, Israel has also deployed troops to the Golan buffer zone, which the UN considers a violation of the 1974 agreement. Nevertheless, the Islamist interim government has so far refrained from military counterattacks. The USA plays a central role as a mediator in the conflict and is looking for ways to clarify the impasse.

Path to normalization

Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar has also spoken out in favor of talks to normalize relations with Syria. He stressed that as part of a peace agreement, the Golan Heights must remain part of the State of Israel. This position could significantly impact progress in the talks and shows how complex negotiations between the two nations remain.

The political landscape in the Middle East is characterized by different interests and historical conflicts that make resolution challenging. The historic peace process initiated in the 1970s was supported by the United States and other international actors. Recent developments are part of a longer, unpredictable process often characterized by military conflicts and diplomatic setbacks, as demonstrated by the analogous experiences of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict affecting the entire region.

The renewed diplomatic efforts nevertheless offer hope for a stabilization of the situation and a possible solution to the long-standing disputes that affect not only Syria and Israel, but the entire region.

To find out more about the historical background and the ongoing military operations, see also Kleine Zeitung, BMLV and Wikipedia.