Syria and Lebanon report 'significant progress' in joint talks
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam met Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa in Damascus, with both sides citing 'significant progress' on security, transport and energy. It was the highest-level encounter since the fall of Bashar al-Assad.
A joint statement after the meeting set up a technical committee tasked with modernising border crossings, addressing the issue of disappeared persons and reactivating the cross-border electricity line. The statement said the two countries' work would run alongside the US-Lebanon-Israel track on Hezbollah disarmament.
Damascus wants renewed access to Beirut's port to revive capital flows. The first technical committee session is scheduled for 14 May; its agenda includes the supply of up to 250 megawatts a day to Lebanon and digitalising customs checks at the border.
The Banque du Liban flagged the cross-border thaw as a factor that could lift its 2026 GDP growth forecast by about 0.4 percentage points. The Syrian pound strengthened roughly 4% against the dollar in informal markets after the statement.
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