Syria’s foreign minister held a rare direct meeting with an Israeli delegation in Paris on Tuesday, talks that were brokered by the United States as part of a diplomatic push for Syria and Israel to normalize relations despite a recent surge in tensions between them.

Syria’s top diplomat held US-mediated talks with Israeli delegates in Paris, seeking to defuse tensions following a flare-up of sectarian violence that prompted Israel to strike its neighboring country last month.

Syria’s state-run news agency says the country’s foreign minister has held a rare meeting with an Israeli delegation in Paris