U.S. says it won't normalise or upgrade Syria ties

FILE PHOTO: Syria's President Bashar al-Assad speaks as he meets with the Syrian cabinet in Damascus, Syria in this handout picture released by Sana on March 30, 2021. SANA/Handout via REUTERS

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States has no plans to "normalise or upgrade" diplomatic relations with the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and also does not encourage others to do so, a State Department spokesperson said on Wednesday.

The comments came in response to Reuters questions on whether Washington was encouraging and supporting a rapprochement between Jordan and Syria after Jordan fully reopened its main border crossing with Syria on Wednesday. The move was to boost the countries' struggling economies and reinforce a push by Arab states to reintegrate Syria after shunning it during its civil war.

(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; Editing by Leslie Adler)