Lebanese Foreign Minister Says Syrian Isolation In Arab League Counterproductive, Must End

Syria should be brought back to the Arab League because isolating the country is counterproductive, Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil told Sputnik on Tuesday on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos

DAVOS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd January, 2019) Syria should be brought back to the Arab League because isolating the country is counterproductive, Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil told Sputnik on Tuesday on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.

"This should happen, because Syria should be in the heart of the Arab world, it cannot be excluded, isolated.

It's not a favor that we are making to Syrians, it's a favor we are making to ourselves. How do we fill Syria's role - with terrorists or with encouraging the creation of a democratic secular regime in Syria?" he said.

The 22-nation Arab League suspended Syria's membership in 2011 after a war broke out in the country. Several member states then pulled their ambassadors from the country. Last year, they began making steps to re-engage Damascus and reopen embassies.