Senior Israeli and Syrian ministers held high-level talks for the first time in 25 years, Axios reports.

The meeting took place in Paris—and under the auspices of US President Donald Trump's special envoy Tom Barrack

Israeli minister for strategic affairs Ron Dermer and Syrian foreign minister Assad al-Sheibani participated in these talks.

The meeting lasted four hours, and its main topic was the de-escalation of tensions between the countries.

The goal of the summit was to reach security understandings regarding southern Syria in order to maintain the ceasefire between Israel and Syria, Israeli officials said.

It is noted that this semi-public meeting in Paris followed numerous secret meetings between Israeli and Syrian officials over the past several months.

Israeli and US officials say the meeting in Paris was a first step and stress confidence-building measures from both sides are needed in order to move forward.