The United Arab Emirates foreign minister met President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus on Tuesday, the Syrian presidency said, a sign of improving ties between Assad and a U.S.-allied Arab state that once supported rebels trying to overthrow him.

Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed is the most senior Emirati dignitary to visit Syria in the decade since the eruption of a civil war in which several Arab states backed mainly Sunni Muslim insurgents against Assad.

A presidency statement said Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed led a delegation of senior Emirati officials that discussed bilateral relations and cooperation in a meeting with Syrian counterparts.