Syria Provides Military Support to Saudi Arabia Against Houthis

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Saudi Arabia and Syria are cooperating militarily to counter attacks by Yemen’s Houthi group, with Damascus providing advisory support, military training, and personnel to the kingdom, a senior US official and two Syrian military sources told Reuters.

“Our Syrian partners are also helping us with their combat experience in confronting armed groups,” a senior Saudi official told the agency, adding that joint training exercises were underway and further security and defense plans were being considered.

Reuters reported on Friday that Riyadh has intensified efforts to secure defensive and offensive support from its allies since fighting between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis resumed in July.

A senior US official said advisory and military training teams from Syria were travelling to Saudi Arabia to train Saudi and Yemeni military units inside the kingdom, with the aim of strengthening their combat capabilities. The Syrian teams have gained extensive combat experience during the country’s years of civil war. Two Syrian military sources also confirmed that dozens of military personnel from Syria had arrived in Saudi Arabia in recent weeks.

However, a senior Syrian diplomat described reports about the deployment of troops as premature, saying that any reference to deploying military personnel at this stage was too early.

The diplomat stressed that Syria’s current priorities were domestic security, border protection, and reconstruction. At the same time, the official said the defense agreement signed between Damascus and Riyadh on Wednesday specifically included advisory support, military training, and the exchange of expertise.

The senior Saudi official said the exchange of expertise was primarily intended to help restructure Syria’s military forces, but that this did not mean Syrian partners would not use their combat experience in confronting armed groups to support Saudi Arabia.

The developments follow a meeting on Wednesday in Riyadh between Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, during which the two countries signed the defense agreement.

The senior US official warned that Washington had urged Damascus to proceed cautiously, saying any Syrian involvement in the war in Yemen could risk drawing the country into a broader regional conflict.

Beyond military cooperation, Saudi Arabia is also providing financial support to Damascus. On Wednesday, the Saudi Fund for Development signed six agreements worth more than $403 million with Syria’s Ministry of Finance to provide concessional loans for reconstruction and service projects.

Meanwhile, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said in remarks in Bahrain that discussions were underway about Syria joining the Mecca Agreement, which was previously signed by Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Türkiye.

Al-Shaibani stressed that Syria considers the security of the Gulf part of its own regional security, while Syria’s security is also part of Gulf security.

“We stand alongside the peoples and governments of the Gulf in confronting challenges and those militias that cross borders,” he said.