The opportunity to bring Syria out of decades of isolation “must not be lost”, the country’s Foreign Minister warned during his first state visit to the UK.

Asaad Al Shibani met UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper on Thursday after raising the new Syrian flag at the formerly abandoned embassy building in London.

Mr Al Shibani said the new government will work “round the clock” to “introduce to the world the importance of Syria”, after it became politically and economically isolated under the regime of former president Bashar Al Assad.

“There are very important files in Britain and we seek to seize this historic opportunity to strengthen relations. Syria is no longer a marginal state but one that matters to all nations,” he said at an event at the Chatham House think tank after his meeting with Ms Cooper.

He described the UK’s relations with Syria as a “deep friendship” that goes back to the UK’s humanitarian and political support for the opposition during the civil war.

Mr Al Shibani also praised the UK lifting sanctions on Syria this year, which paved the way for similar reversals in the EU and US.

“Our relationships with the UK are advanced. We are not talking about opening a new page, we are talking about deepening these relationships because they are strong ones,” he said.

“It represents a friendship that is deep on the humanitarian level, on the economic level in the coming days.