Overview

• A Syrian and an Israeli official met face-to-face in Baku on July 12 to confront Israel’s recent military strikes and buffer-zone deployments in Syria.
• President Ahmed al-Sharaa stayed away from the session, which took place on the sidelines of his talks with Azerbaijan’s Ilham Aliyev.
• Damascus’s interim government has pursued indirect contacts aimed at reinstating the 1974 disengagement agreement for the Golan Heights.
• Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar and US envoy Tom Barrack have both voiced support for kicking off a wider normalization process.
• Azerbaijan confirmed it will begin exporting gas to Syria via Turkey, integrating energy cooperation into the emerging dialogue.