Pakistan PM Shahbaz welcomes Al Sharaa on assuming interim presidency of Syria, expresses hope for peace

Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif welcomed Ahmed Al Sharaa’s assumption of the office of the Syrian president during the transitional phase.

In a post on social media platform X, Pakistan PM Shahbaz expressed hope that the new leadership will be able to bring peace, progress and prosperity to the brotherly people of Syria.

This was the first formal reaction and recognition of change in Syria by Pakistan and came just days after the head of opposition group Ahmed Al Sharaa became interim President of the war-torn country.

“We welcome Ahmed Al Sharaa’s assumption of office as President of the Syrian Arab Republic during the transitional phase and hope that the new leadership will be able to bring peace, progress and prosperity to the brotherly people of Syria,” Shahbaz wrote on X account, formerly twitter.

Sharaa was declared president for a transitional phase, less than two months after he led a campaign that toppled Bashar Al Assad.

He was also empowered to form a temporary legislative council for a transitional period and the Syrian constitution was suspended.

Many Arab countries were quick to welcome him as Qatar's Emir made a surprise visit to Damascus on Saturday, becoming the first Arab leader to travel to Syria after the Assad regime fell in December.

It is believed that Pakistan decided to finally abandon the decades old policy after many of its Arab friends and Turkey, one of the main backers of the new setup, supported Al Sharaa.