A highly sensitive diplomatic event is unfolding in the French capital today, where senior officials from the United States, Israel, and Syria’s transitional government are convening for an unprecedented trilateral meeting.
Participants include U.S. Special Envoy Tom Barrack, Israel’s Minister of Strategic Affairs, and Asaad al-Shibani, the Foreign Minister in Syria’s interim government.
First-of-Its-Kind Talks Amid Southern Turmoil
The meeting marks a historic first in the wake of rapidly shifting geopolitical dynamics in southern Syria—particularly the bloody events that have rocked the province of Suweida in recent weeks.
According to Israeli journalist Barak Ravid—well known for his close ties to decision-making circles in Tel Aviv and Washington—the talks will focus on security-related issues in southern Syria. The discussions come amid escalating military and intelligence coordination between the three parties, especially in areas bordering the Golan Heights armistice line. The region is increasingly emerging as a new theatre for regional security arrangements involving Washington, Ankara, and Tel Aviv, either directly or indirectly.
Quiet Channels Reopen
While official details remain scarce, diplomatic sources speaking to Saudi media, including Al Arabiya, confirmed that security coordination between the Syrian transitional government and Israel has resumed under U.S. and Turkish auspices. This signals a reopening of communication channels that had been frozen in recent months following the collapse of indirect negotiations on other tracks.
These sources added that the agenda goes far beyond Suweida. It reportedly includes broader files such as the status of Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria—namely the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)—as well as the sectarian power balances among key communities in the region, particularly the Druze and Alawites. These are among the most contentious issues shaping both Syria’s internal dynamics and the regional security architecture, where Israeli and Turkish interests increasingly intersect.
Wider Regional Realignments
The significance of these developments was further underscored by news of an Israeli delegation heading to Azerbaijan this week. Diplomatic sources suggest the visit is part of a broader regional framework to negotiate de-escalation lines and spheres of influence inside Syria. Talks are reportedly advancing toward a potential “settlement” over Suweida, which has seen unprecedented violence, including wide-scale military operations and airstrikes widely attributed to Israel.
According to the same sources, Israel is demanding the transformation of southern Syria into a demilitarized zone, coupled with a permanent security presence along the 1974 disengagement line. This has raised alarms over possible Israeli ambitions to entrench a long-term military footprint in the area, under the pretext of “protecting the Druze”—a justification Tel Aviv has repeatedly invoked to legitimize its interventions in Syrian territory.
Silent Signals and Shadow Diplomacy
Just last week, Israel conducted a sweeping aerial campaign targeting over 160 sites across four key Syrian governorates: Suweida, Daraa, Damascus, and the Damascus countryside. The strikes resulted in three deaths and at least 34 injuries, most of them in the capital. The Syrian government’s muted response to the attacks has been widely interpreted as a sign of either tacit understanding or the existence of covert communication channels between Damascus and Tel Aviv.
Today’s meeting in Paris may be the most public confirmation yet of a shifting regional order—one in which the old lines of hostility are being quietly renegotiated under the weight of shared security concerns and geopolitical recalibrations.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
