Saudi Arabia and Syria Sign Defence Cooperation Agreement in Riyadh

Saudi Arabia and Syria have signed a Saudi Syria defence cooperation agreement between their defence ministries, Saudi state news agency SPA reported on Wednesday, 4 November, during a visit to Riyadh by Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa.

The agreement was signed as al-Sharaa met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the Saudi capital. It was their second meeting in Saudi Arabia in less than a month, and it comes as Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group continues its missile and drone attacks on the kingdom.

FAKTA

• What happened: Saudi Arabia and Syria signed a defence cooperation agreement between their defence ministries on Wednesday, 4 November 2026.
• Where: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, during Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s official visit.
• Who met: Al-Sharaa met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman; Syria’s defence minister also met Saudi Defence Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman.
• What is known: No details of what the agreement entails have been made public so far.
• Alongside it: The Saudi Fund for Development signed six concessional development loan agreements worth more than $403 million with Syria’s Finance Ministry.
• Background: Saudi Arabia has been seeking support from partners in the United States, Europe and the Middle East as its renewed war against the Houthis in Yemen continues.

Saudi Syria defence cooperation agreement: what we know

SPA reported the signing of the defence ministries’ agreement, and Syrian Defence Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra announced the defence cooperation agreement during the visit. According to the Syrian presidency’s account of the trip, Abu Qasra accompanied al-Sharaa to meetings with the Saudi crown prince and with Prince Khalid bin Salman, during which several agreements and memorandums of understanding were signed.

The Syrian delegation included the ministers of foreign affairs, defence, finance and industry, as well as the head of the General Intelligence Directorate. The meeting with the crown prince was held at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh, with ministers and senior officials from both countries present, according to the Syrian presidency.

Why the timing matters

The agreement lands while Saudi Arabia is fighting a renewed war against the Houthis in Yemen, whose missile and drone attacks on the kingdom have continued. Reuters reported last month that Syria was carefully weighing providing military assistance to Saudi Arabia in that conflict.

Saudi Arabia has been requesting assistance far and wide, from the United States to Europe and the Middle East, for both defensive and offensive support, Reuters reported. A Syrian diplomat said at the time that any request for military cooperation or exchange of expertise would take place exclusively through official channels and within the framework of the bilateral agreements governing relations between the two countries.

Wider deals signed during the visit

The defence agreement was not the only deal of the visit. The Saudi Fund for Development signed six agreements with Syria’s Finance Ministry for concessional development loans worth more than $403 million to support development and service sectors in Syria, the Syrian ministry said.

The kingdom has been providing financial assistance to Syria and played a key role in re-establishing Damascus’ ties with world powers after the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad.

What remains unclear

Neither side has published the contents of the defence agreement, so it is not yet known whether it covers areas such as training, equipment, intelligence sharing or direct military support. Further details may emerge as the two ministries begin implementing it.

For more news from the region, see our Middle East coverage.