Arab foreign ministers decided in an Arab League (AL) extraordinary meeting to restore Syria's membership in the league after 12 years of suspension, said a final statement after the AL council meeting in Cairo on May 7.

The decision said Syria could resume its participation in the AL meetings immediately, while calling for a resolution of the crisis resulting from Syria's civil war.

Syria's return will help build consensus on a political solution to the Syrian crisis, said Syrian political analyst Ghassan Yusuf. Twelve years after Syria's crisis, the AL recognized that the Syrian government cannot be replaced and that its institutions should be retained. Therefore, Arab countries can play an effective role in resolving the Syrian crisis, while also playing an active role in the reconstruction of the country's economy. 

The reinstatement of Syria into the AL is also a meaningful step for the Syrian people. 

"We believe that Syria's return to the AL is good news for the Syrian people who have suffered so much. We hope that the situation will be further de-escalated, because only if the Arab countries are more united will they have more influence," Mazen Al-Hamdi, a local resident in Syria, told CMG.

"In the current difficult economic situation, Syria's return to the AL is critical, and we can use it to escape the effects of unilateral U.S. sanctions and make improvements in both current and future living conditions," Mazen Hafar, a local resident in Syria, told CMG.

"Syria's rejoining to the AL does not mean that member states must restore diplomatic relations with Syria, and the restoration of diplomatic relations depends on the will of each country," the AL Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit told reporters in Cairo.

Global response to Syria's return

Some countries, including China, have expressed their congratulation and welcome to the decision.

"We believe this is conducive to the strength and unity of Arab states, the development and revitalization of the Arab world and peace and stability in the Middle East. This serves the long-term interests of Arab states," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Monday, saying that China has always supported Arab states in seeking strength through unity, and actively supported Syria in returning to the AL.

Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Nasser Kanaani congratulated the success of Syria in "regaining its place and its seat in the AL to the government and people of the country," according to the ministry's Twitter page.

However, U.S. State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel voiced opposition to Syria's return to the AL.

"We do not believe that Syria merits readmission to the AL at this time, and it's a point that we've made clear with all of our partners," Patel told reporters.

"It is not expected that the U.S. and some European countries will be pleased with our decision to restore Syria's membership in the AL, but it is an independent and autonomous Arab decision," Gheit said, adding that "the common interest of the Arab countries requires that we can no longer ignore the Syrian issue.”

Since the Syrian crisis erupted in 2011, the AL suspended Syria's membership and a number of Arab countries closed their embassies in Syria. In recent years, as the domestic and regional situation in Syria has evolved, Arab countries have increasingly sought to normalize relations with Syria, and many countries have called on the AL to restore Syria's membership.

(With input from agencies)