Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz welcomed Arab leaders at the start of the Arab summit in Jeddah on Friday, the return of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to attend the meetings of the Arab League after an absence of more than a decade.

"Today, we are pleased with President Bashar al-Assad's attendance at this summit, and the issuance of the Arab League's decision regarding the resumption of the participation of Syrian government delegations in the meetings of the Arab League Council," the Saudi crown prince said in his speech.

He added, "We hope that this will contribute to supporting the stability of Syria, the return of things to normal, and the resumption of its natural role in the Arab world, in a way that achieves the good for its people, and in a way that supports all of our aspirations towards a better future for our region."

Several Arab countries, most notably Saudi Arabia, supported the political and armed opposition, especially in the early years of the conflict, and called for regime change in Syria.

Diplomatic shifts accelerated in the Arab arena following the announcement of an agreement between Saudi Arabia and Iran, one of Damascus' most prominent allies, last March to resume relations, in a move whose repercussions were evident on the regional political scene in a region that has long been shaken by proxy conflicts.

Last month, Al-Assad received Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan in Damascus, in the first visit of this kind since the outbreak of the conflict in Syria in 2011 and the freezing of its membership in the Arab League. The official Saudi media has long accused the Assad regime of committing "crimes."

In his speech, the Crown Prince said, "We will not allow our region to turn into fields of conflicts, and it is enough for us to turn the page on the past by remembering the painful years of conflicts that the region lived through, from which its people suffered, and because of which the development process faltered."