Yesterday, Saturday, the Lebanese newspaper al-Akhbar, close to Hezbollah, revealed an expected visit of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to the capital of China, Beijing, soon, in the hope of receiving financial aid to stop the economic collapse in his country.
The newspaper cited what it called "eastern diplomatic sources" as saying that a Syrian delegation is expected to visit Beijing soon to hold high-level meetings with Chinese officials to develop bilateral relations between the two sides and discuss China's role in helping Bashar al-Assad. overcome the economic crisis in his country.
According to sources in the Syrian regime, whose names the newspaper did not mention, the visit will be "very important", and that Bashar al-Assad will be received by Chinese President Xi Jinping in an official ceremony.
According to the newspaper, Assad's visit "will be a strategic milestone in the course of relations with China, and a further strengthening of the Chinese role in the region," after Beijing achieved the Saudi-Iranian reconciliation this spring.
The newspaper stated that the visit is "mainly political", and the visit indicates Beijing's desire to establish the legitimacy of the Syrian regime at the international level.
The visit also confirms China's desire to expand its role and presence in the Middle East.