BEIRUT — Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrived in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, marking his fourth visit since taking power early last year, as economic ties between the two countries have grown rapidly since the ouster of the Assad regime.

Sharaa landed at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah and is scheduled to meet Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to discuss ways to strengthen bilateral relations and issues of mutual interest, state-run news agency SANA said.

The visit marks Sharaa's first to Saudi Arabia since the start of the US-Israel-Iran war. The Syrian government condemned the Iranian attacks against Gulf countries in response to US-Israeli joint strikes, marking a clear departure from the Assad regime’s close alliance with Iran. In a call with his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, on Feb. 28, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani expressed his country’s support for Saudi Arabia’s right to protect its territory. On March 9, the Syrian Foreign Ministry condemned the Iranian attack that struck near a residential area in Saudi Arabia's al-Kharj governorate, killing two people. 

The Syrian presidential media office announced on Monday Sharaa’s visit, which it said was part of a wider Gulf tour — though it did not specify where the Syrian leader plans to go next.