Syrian President al-Sharaa to visit Germany for talks with Merz
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa is expected in Berlin on Monday for a two-day visit centred on thorny issues including the repatriation of Syrian refugees living in Germany and ongoing violence in the war-torn country.
Al-Sharaa is set to meet Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Tuesday and participate in a round table with business leaders, Economy Minister Katherina Reiche and Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, a spokesman for the German government said on Friday.
Merz invited the Syrian leader to Germany in November to discuss the return of Syrian nationals to their homeland following the fall of dictator Bashar al-Assad in late 2024.
Germany is home to hundreds of thousands of Syrian nationals, most of whom fled the country after the outbreak of civil war in 2011.
Al-Sharaa led a coalition of Islamist militias to overthrow the longtime ruler before being appointed transitional president in January 2025.
He has since sought to renew Syrian ties with Western countries, but several waves of violence against minorities have undermined trust in his leadership in recent months, with hundreds of people reported killed.
Most recently, fighting in Syria’s second-largest city, Aleppo, raised fears of further escalation with government troops fighting against Kurdish forces.
Al-Sharaa’s visit to Germany has attracted criticism from representatives of Kurdish and Alawite communities in the country who accuse the new Syrian government of violently oppressing minorities.
