The Arab League has agreed to bring Syria back into the organisation after years of suspension. The decision was made during a meeting of the foreign ministers of the Arab League member states in Cairo on May 8.

The move marks a significant shift in the region’s politics and comes after years of division and violence in Syria and an ongoing process of reconsolidation amongst Middle Eastern countries as they look to join the emerging BRICS bloc to form a BRICS+ club.

China recently brokered a rapprochement between long-standing foes Iran and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), who reopened their embassies on May 9.

And the BRICS bloc advanced another step after Saudi Arabia's cabinet approved a decision to join the Shanghai Co-operation Organization (SCO) on April 6, cementing the increasingly close ties between the Middle East oil producer and China.

The Persian Gulf states of Bahrain and Qatar have announced that they will restore diplomatic relations in April and thus end Qatar’s black sheep status in the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

The SCO is becoming increasingly important in China’s diplomatic drive to co-ordinate the leading emerging markets (EMs) into a loose political confederacy to better represent their interests in the face of the Western hegemony over geopolitics.

As part of this drive to bring the Middle Eastern counties together with the likes of Russia, Kazakhstan and Venezuela, the BRICS+ group will control a substantial part of the world’s oil production.

Syria has been ostracised under Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, but thanks to its friendship with Russia it is now being rehabilitated. Syria was suspended from the Arab League in 2011, after the country was accused of using violence against peaceful protesters, including chemical weapon attacks on civilians.

The Arab League demanded that Syria stop the violence and implement democratic reforms. However, Syria refused to comply with the Arab League’s demands and the country became increasingly isolated.

The decision to re-admit Syria to the Arab League comes after years of international efforts to end the Syrian fighting. The conflict, which began in 2011, has left hundreds of thousands of people dead and displaced millions, many of which are now in Turkey, another member of the BRICS+ club. The international community has been pushing for a political solution to the crisis, but progress has been slow.

The re-admission of Syria to the Arab League is a significant step towards restoring stability in the region. The Arab League is an important regional organisation that brings together Arab countries to discuss and co-ordinate political, economic and social issues. Syria’s re-admission to the Arab League is a sign that the country is willing to work with its neighbours to address the region’s challenges.

The decision to re-admit Syria to the Arab League is also a significant shift in the region’s politics. The Syrian conflict has caused deep divisions in the Arab world, with some countries supporting the Syrian government and others supporting the opposition. The re-admission of Syria to the Arab League is a sign that the Arab countries are willing to set aside their differences and work towards a common goal.