TEL AVIV — Israel and Syria are close to signing a security agreement reaffirming the accord they concluded after the 1973 Yom Kippur War. No official announcement has been made yet, but diplomatic sources told Al-Monitor that an agreement could be imminent.

The emerging deal falls short of a peace or normalization agreement, but it is nevertheless welcome news for Israel, Syria, the broader region and US President Donald Trump. The Trump administration has undertaken concerted efforts to mediate an understanding between the two neighbors, led primarily by US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack.

In the latest indication that US efforts are bearing fruit, preparations are underway for a historic meeting this month between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York. Sharaa told reporters on Wednesday that ongoing negotiations with Israel on a security pact could yield results “in the coming days.”

Barring a new clash between the Syrian government and the country’s Druze minority, the emerging deal  appears to be the most promising achievement of Trump’s global peacemaking ambitions. An agreement between two neighbors that have fought bitter wars in the past could help, to some extent, offset the disappointments of his campaigns to end Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip and the Russia-Ukraine conflict.