Syria Seeks Resumption of Israel Security Talks Amid Deep Mistrust

In a scheduled interview on August 23 in Damascus, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said that talks on a security agreement with Israel, frozen since the start of the Iran war, are expected to resume soon. The freeze followed Israel’s strike on the Abu al-Duhur airbase, after which all direct contact between Damascus and Jerusalem was cut. Shaibani emphasized that any future dialogue must begin with a halt to Israeli attacks on Syrian territory.

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Syria and Israel have been technically at war since 1948, and Israel captured the Golan Heights in the 1967 Six-Day War. After President Bashar al-Assad was toppled in 2024, Israel seized additional territory in southwestern Syria and conducted numerous strikes, citing security concerns. The United States has been attempting to broker a security deal for more than a year, aiming to create buffer zones and a de-confliction mechanism involving Turkey.

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• Asaad al-Shaibani – Syrian Foreign Minister, primary spokesperson on the negotiations.

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• Ahmed al-Sharaa – President of Syria, under whose administration the talks are pursued.

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• Tom Barrack – U.S. special envoy for Syria, working on a mechanism to prevent conflict among Israel, Turkey and Syria.

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• Syria has endured 14 years of war before the current rebuilding phase.

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• The draft agreement envisions multiple security zones near the Israeli border, including a United Nations-only buffer zone and areas where Syrian forces would deploy at varying levels.

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He added that Israel has not demonstrated a genuine willingness to implement the draft, describing its approach as “brute force” that “hasn’t succeeded.”

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U.S. special envoy Tom Barrack indicated that Washington is working to establish a mechanism to prevent clashes among Israel, Turkey and Syria, but Shaibani noted that no agreement on the mechanism has been reached. He argued that any such framework must first stop Israeli attacks rather than “entrench… Israeli occupation.”

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The Israeli prime minister’s office declined to comment when approached for a response.

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Israel claimed that Syria was preparing to allow Turkish forces to deploy at Abu al-Duhur, a charge denied by both Damascus and Ankara. No Israeli official provided a statement on the airstrike or the alleged Turkish deployment, leaving the precise motivations for the attack unverified.

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• “We believe there should be contact, especially with a party that constantly threatens the security of Syria. But if this contact doesn’t bring results, then we don’t need it,” — Syria. Shaibani

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• “It’s very hard to bet on Israel.” — Syria. Shaibani

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Washington continues to press Israel to re-engage in dialogue, while the proposed de-confliction mechanism remains under discussion. No concrete timetable has been set for the resumption of formal negotiations or for the implementation of any security zones.

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