Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani was set to arrive in Islamabad Wednesday evening for a two-day visit to Pakistan, a Pakistani Foreign Ministry source said.

Al-Shaibani will be in Pakistan on Aug. 19-20 at the invitation of his counterpart, Ishaq Dar, said the source, who asked not to be named.

The trip will mark the highest-level visit by a Syrian official to Pakistan since the overthrow of Bashar Assad in 2024, although other Syrian ministers have visited Islamabad since then.

It will also be the first visit by a Syrian foreign minister to Pakistan in 19 years.

In addition to talks with Dar, al-Shaibani is expected to meet Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and other ministers.

The last Syrian foreign minister to visit Pakistan was Walid al-Mouallem, who traveled to Islamabad in May 2007.

A Pakistani delegation met al-Shaibani in Damascus in June last year.

In March, the Pakistani prime minister discussed the ongoing escalation in the Middle East with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa during a telephone call.

Renewed contacts

Al-Shaibani was appointed foreign minister under President al-Sharaa's administration following the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024.

His visit comes as Islamabad on Wednesday "strongly" condemned Israel's unprovoked attack on the Abu al-Duhur Airbase in Syria's northwestern Idlib province.

The two sides are expected to discuss ways to revive and expand cooperation in various fields, including the economy and defense, according to the source.

Islamabad and Damascus have maintained decadeslong relations, strengthened by military cooperation and training exchanges.

Pakistan's Embassy in Damascus remained open following Assad's overthrow, although bilateral cooperation between the two countries has remained limited over the past two years.

Pakistan and Syria formally established diplomatic relations in December 1949, two years after the creation of Pakistan.

Bilateral trade between Pakistan and Syria remains modest, totaling just $8.49 million.