Al-Sharaa: Damascus Seeks Security Deal With Israel

Damascus has sent a signal that seemed hard to imagine only recently. Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa told the Qatari broadcaster Al Jazeera that his government is seeking a security agreement with Israel, a move that shifts the geopolitical reality of the Middle East and that, though distant from Belgrade, also touches Serbian diplomacy. Serbia has for years maintained a careful balance toward the region, from energy links to votes at the United Nations, so every shift in relations between Damascus and Tel Aviv directly shapes the framework in which that policy operates.

The statement carries added weight because it arrives at a moment of strained relations and open military tension. Al-Sharaa, who came to the head of the Syrian state after the fall of the long-ruling regime, had until now avoided direct messages toward Israel. Now, however, he speaks openly of seeking an agreement that would regulate security questions between the two countries, signaling a readiness to keep a diplomatic channel where open hostility prevailed for decades.

What al-Sharaa offers and what he wants in return

The Syrian president did not set out a detailed draft, but the thrust of the message is clear: Damascus wants a predictable security arrangement rather than permanent confrontation. The appeal comes as Israel conducts military operations along the borders and as, according to accusations from within the region, it has obstructed the handover of so-called pilot zones in southern Lebanon through shelling. It is that continuous fire pressure that Damascus cites as proof that there can be no stability along the sensitive belt without a formal deal.

For al-Sharaa this is also a domestic test. Syrian society, exhausted by years of war, is divided over how far the new authorities may go in talks with Israel. The president calculates that a security agreement would bring a calmer border and room to rebuild the country, while critics warn that any concession could be read as abandoning earlier principles. The diplomatic channel that al-Sharaa is announcing therefore carries high political risk at both ends.

Reactions from European capitals are cautious for now. Brussels has gradually opened its doors to the new Syrian leadership over recent months, and European officials received al-Sharaa at several meetings, counting on a stabilization that would ease migration pressure and return some refugees. A security deal with Israel would fit that logic, but the European Union is at the same time weighing every step carefully, aware that the region remains combustible even after formal declarations.

What does the shift in Damascus mean for Serbia and the region?

For Serbia, which keeps channels open to both the Arab world and Israel, every shift in this relationship changes the diplomatic calculus. Belgrade traditionally builds its foreign policy on the ability to talk to all sides, so a more stable Middle East would ease Serbian economic and political interests alike, from trade to multilateral votes. The new security framework that Syria is entering also indirectly affects how Belgrade reads the transatlantic link and the stance of European partners toward the region.

The shift that al-Sharaa is announcing is far from a finished agreement. The Israeli side has not publicly accepted the appeal so far, and continued shelling in the region’s south shows how unstable the belt remains. Still, the very fact that the Syrian president speaks openly of a security deal marks a tectonic shift in a relationship that rested for decades on silence and force. Will Tel Aviv answer the call from Damascus, or will military pressure outweigh diplomacy before talks even begin?