Syria’s foreign policy a year after liberation: Hopes and achievements

Historically, Syria has always been considered a crossroads between the East and West, a place where Europe meets Asia, and a trading hub for centuries. As empires rose and fell, it withstood challenges, no more so than the last half a century of Assad family rule. As the first anniversary of the liberation of Syria approaches, a reflection of how far the war-ravaged state has come and how it has tried to position itself internationally is apt. Early signs are positive.

The Syrian Foreign Minister, Assad Al-Shaibani, was present in London last week to speak to the British Syrian community, meet the British Foreign Secretary, and open the new Syrian Embassy which has been closed since 2012 after the Houla Massacre, perpetrated by forces loyal to the Assad regime. A visiting foreign minister meeting the diaspora from his country is not new; Assad himself ensured that plenty of Syrians flocked to London to greet him when he made an official visit to the UK in 2002 and met with both Blair, and bizarrely, the late Queen Elizabeth. 

The fact that Syrians could converse with the Foreign Minister openly and not need to seek permission for questions is a small victory in itself. I witnessed this myself. And crucially, Al-Shaibani was at the launch for the Syrian British Business Council and spoke to businessmen about investment for the new Syrian state. The impression made by Al-Shaibani was widely remarked to be positive, and the fact that he flew from Washington DC to Damascus and then back to London in the opposite direction all within 48 hours was appreciated. There is clearly a level of goodwill here that the new government will be afforded. Al-Shaibani reopening the Syrian Embassy was a source of pride for the Syrian diaspora and was a signal that this new government is being taken seriously.

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Ahmed Al-Sharaa, the new Syrian President, seems to be playing a bad hand well. The inheritance left from 50 years of endemic corruption, tyranny and needless provocation of other states has left him with an unenviable job of restoring Syria to the top table, but progress has been made. His speech at the United Nations General Assembly earlier in September was well received, and more recently, he made history by being the first President of Syria to visit the White House since 1946, the year of Syria’s independence from the French. 

This alone isn’t necessarily a reason to celebrate, as the last thing the Syrian people need is a leader who is suddenly indebted to the US after decades of being fanatically loyal to Russia, with Syria being used as a pawn or proxy. 

The deftness of Al-Sharaa’s lobbying and advocacy on the removal of sanctions from his country and not only successfully convincing the unpredictable  Trump to remove sanctions, but lobbying Congress too on the removal of the Caesar Act too has been noted. This is all whilst figures from the foreign policy establishment were reluctant to bring in Al-Sharaa so close to their orbit knowing his history as an Al-Qaeda affiliate which in the West, is a permanent stain. Al-Sharaa has been removed from the UN sanctions list as well as the US and British sanctions on a personal level too, allowing him to travel freely and represent Syria unencumbered. 

Al-Sharaa’s ability to have senior US figures buy in to his ideas is a real asset and there is no doubt his charm and charisma have been well utilised to good effect. From a media perspective, this can be easily demonstrated; Al-Sharaa playing basketball with a US CentCom commander would not have been something anyone expected to see only recently.

Interestingly, Syrian-Russian relations have not soured in the way in which commentators may have expected in the post-Assad era. Russia is well known for having been one of Assad’s staunchest allies during the uprising and subsequent conflict, vetoing countless resolutions that condemned the Assad regime, and have granted Assad himself asylum in Moscow. 

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That being said, Al-Sharaa made a well-publicised, if controversial, trip to Russia shortly after he spoke at the UN General Assembly where he made clear that he would honour past agreements Syria had entered into with Russia, chiefly its naval port in on the Mediterranean coastal city, Tartous. The meeting was not universally welcomed amongst the Syrian people, with some taking a pragmatic approach to having to deal with major powers, whilst others being disappointed that a state that was launching airstrikes in Syria (including Idlib the region which Al-Sharaa led as part of the Syrian Salvation Government until 2024) was being approached. 

It can be argued however, that regardless of the rights and wrongs of the approach, this was the new Syrian government trying to chart an independent path of its own, and keen to demonstrate that it is not a part of the “west” in a way that a state like Jordan is for example. Al-Shaibani has also just visited China – another backer of the former Assad regime – and spoke about its efforts in aiding Syria’s reconstruction and shared ties between the two nations. By visiting China, the new Syrian leadership managed to connect with all five permanent members of the UN Security Council.

The crucial matter here is Syria and its people’s interest; this is a fine line that Al-Sharaa and the new government will need to grapple with in the coming months; how do you sell potentially unpopular decisions which are in the interest of your country whilst you can’t demonstrate the interest just yet? As Syria transitions to a proper democracy with a strong constitution, embraces the rule of law, and develops a judiciary independent to its executive and legislature, it will need to balance how public opinion and its citizenry channel their views into how the government operates.

Syria is trying to forge its own path. This is not a simple task, and the new government will face more challenges in the foreign policy arena. Israel’s continued encroachment in the South is unacceptable, and repeated Israeli strikes on Syria must stop. Al-Sharaa with all his charm and charisma has been able to successfully lobby against a plethora of US and EU sanctions and make Syria a respected member of the international community once again, as it was in the pre-Assad and pre-Baath era. It will take all his charm to ensure that Israel takes a huge step back into its own borders. No pressure.

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The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.