هذا التقرير متاح أيضًا بـ العربية

French President Emmanuel Macron’s anticipated visit to the Syrian capital, Damascus, and his talks with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa constitute a major political event and an unprecedented step, the first by a Western head of state since the overthrow of Bashar Assad’s regime.

It also returns the language of French presidential diplomacy to Damascus for the first time since Nicolas Sarkozy’s visits in 2008 and 2009, within the context of a French track that began in early 2025 when Paris opened channels of communication with Damascus and culminated in President al-Sharaa’s visit to Paris in May 2025. 

At a time when Damascus is shaping the contours of its new phase, the economic component takes center stage in this visit, as Macron is leading a delegation that includes investors and representatives of French companies to hold a roundtable session with President al-Sharaa and Syrian delegations, a path that reflects the current French approach based on encouraging French companies interested in entering Syria’s investment sector, while urging and reassuring them.

Despite the event’s political and economic importance, the details and timing of the visit were marked by ambiguity and secrecy. Preparations were made without setting a precise date, according to the Media Directorate at the Presidency of the Syrian Arab Republic, and without official French confirmation, even as the two countries’ flags were hung along the road to Damascus International Airport.

This coincided with a bombing at a cafe in central Damascus a few days earlier, while analysts linked the visit to the cancellation of the first session of the Syrian parliament, which had been scheduled for July 6.

This French movement represents an extension of Paris’ efforts to open channels of communication and establish relations with the new Syria since the fall of the Assad regime on Dec. 8, 2024. Its clearest sign was the visit by the French foreign minister, Jean-Noel Barrot, as the first European minister to visit Damascus, accompanied by his then-German counterpart Annalena Baerbock, on Jan. 3, 2025. 

Relations between the two countries gradually developed from the stage of the conditions Macron set in March 2025 for meeting al-Sharaa conditions he tied to the government’s openness to all components of Syrian civil society, ensuring the safe return of refugees, and combating terrorism before later moving to the level of exchanging delegations and official visits. Paris was also the city that hosted unconventional negotiations between Syria and “Israel” twice during July and August 2025.

Despite open channels of communication, the course of relations faced setbacks on several issues, most notably the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). France adopted an approach supporting the self-rule sought by the SDF, and Paris recently received its commander, Mazloum Abdi, something Damascus sees as interference in its internal affairs through hosting figures who do not hold official positions.

During efforts to integrate the SDF into state institutions, and amid the tensions and stalling that accompanied that process, Damascus rejected Paris as the venue for mediated negotiations, after having previously been open to and supportive of that proposal, which was reflected in the nature of the French presence in the Syrian scene. 

Milestones on the path of Damascus-Paris rapprochement

France is tied to a historical memory in Syria dating back to the mandate period, and it has a presence in contentious issues between Syria and Lebanon, particularly the thorny issue of border demarcation, amid rising talk in recent months about a Syrian military intervention in Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah, despite Damascus maintaining its rejection of intervention and supporting dialogue and assistance without confrontation. 

France was among the first Western countries to boycott Bashar Assad’s regime after the outbreak of the Syrian revolution in 2011, and it maintained a position supportive of the political transition process. Meanwhile, CMA CGM was the first French company to strengthen its presence in the new Syria economically, by signing a 30-year contract to develop and operate the port of Latakia, with a total investment of about 230 million euros.

Paris is part of the European movement aimed at reopening channels of economic cooperation with post-Assad Syria. The French attended conferences, seminars, and economic meetings, and Syrian Finance Minister Mohammed Yosr Bernieh also took part last May in the meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors of the Group of Seven industrialized countries, where he presented the financial reforms the Syrian government is working on and the challenges it faces. 

By contrast, the new Syria is pursuing a policy of “zero problems” and linking reconstruction to investment. It is urging countries to enter the Syrian market and promoting opportunities that “have room for everyone,” while working to create an attractive environment for investors. It is also seeking to present itself as a safe haven to ensure the security of supply chains and a reliable corridor for energy supplies, at a time when reconstruction costs are estimated at about $216 billion.

Writer and political analyst Firas Allawi believes Macron’s visit is primarily economic in nature, in light of leaks suggesting he would be accompanied by a delegation of investors and business owners. He also sees it as an attempt to find and assert a French role in Syria and the Middle East, especially amid the decline of the Iranian and Russian roles, and the opportunity that creates to fill part of that vacuum.

Allawi told Noonpost that most countries around the world are seeking to strengthen their presence in the region, but France, by virtue of its historical legacy and ties to the Middle East, is trying to play this role alongside the United States, especially as Washington appears inclined to maintain its economic presence while reducing its security and military presence, at least for now.

He added that the main issues to be discussed begin with the economic file and Syrian-French relations, suggesting that the SDF file and the situation on the Syrian coast after the tensions it witnessed will also be present. He also sees Syrian-Lebanese relations as one of the important files for France, noting that Macron considers himself responsible for this file in the region.

A security file … returning to the region through Syria 

Wael Alwan, a researcher at the Jusoor Center for Studies, believes Macron’s visit comes in the context of growing French interest, alongside security concerns tied to a number of files at both the regional and international levels.

Alwan told Noonpost that Syria occupies an extremely important position amid regional and international shifts, especially from a security perspective. He noted that for the United States, the European Union, and Britain, Syria remains primarily a security file and has not yet moved into independent political or economic tracks, as most Western engagement with any Syrian issue remains governed by security tools.

He added that France sees its influence as having declined significantly in the Middle East in general, and in Syria and Lebanon in particular, after the shifts led by the United States in the region, which resulted in the expansion of American influence in internal and external issues. That expansion worries Paris, amid tensions in French-American relations over issues broader than the Middle East, including Ukraine, energy markets, the Iranian war, and other files that keep relations between the two sides in a state of relative instability. 

Alwan continued that France realizes developments in Lebanon including the killing of Hassan Nasrallah, the strikes that hit Beirut, and then the reshaping of the army leadership and the formation of a new government have greatly strengthened American influence there. He pointed out that Washington was among the most prominent supporters of the political transition process in Syria, as well as in Iraq, which enhanced its ability to hold greater levers of influence in the region at both the domestic and external levels. 

Accordingly, Alwan believes this reality is pushing France to reconsider its cards in the region, which is why it is focusing on the economic dimension. It fully understands Syria’s urgent need for investment and economic recovery, after promises related to the flow of investments and companies faltered and were delayed during the period following the fall of the Assad regime. 

Alwan stressed that Paris is watching this scene and knows that strengthening its security and political presence in Lebanon and Syria can begin through the gateway of investment. That is why Macron is arriving accompanied by an economic delegation aimed at exploring investment opportunities and removing obstacles.

He emphasized that the economy and investment form an entry point into the regional political and security landscapes, without ruling out the possibility that France could play a role in future Syrian-Israeli talks, considering that the files France follows are read more in their regional and international context than as purely internal Syrian issues.

What about the SDF and “the foreigners”?

France supported the Syrian Democratic Forces’ self-rule ambitions after the fall of the Assad regime and managed part of the mediation with Damascus, before the new Syrian administration rejected having consultations with the SDF conducted in Paris and insisted they take place in Damascus because it is “the legitimate and national address for dialogue among Syrians.” This caused the file to negatively affect relations between Damascus and Paris.

The French position on the SDF was not new, as it is tied to the group’s role in fighting the Islamic State organization. In 2019, French President Macron urged his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on the need to protect the SDF, amid concerns over its fate, especially after Washington announced the withdrawal of its forces from Syria and Ankara threatened at the time to launch a military operation.

The file of foreign fighters in Syria, especially the French, was among the issues raised in the first meeting between al-Sharaa and Macron. Most French fighters in Syria fall under the umbrella of the “Ghuraba” brigade in northern Idlib, which includes about 70 French fighters and has a history of tension with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, renewed by clashes that the Syrian government contained in October 2025.

The foreign fighters file constitutes a growing source of concern for the countries these fighters come from, as security considerations overlap with political and diplomatic calculations, while al-Sharaa has stressed containing this file, calming fears, and preventing Syrian territory from being used to threaten any foreign country.

On the SDF and foreign fighters files, especially the French, political analyst Firas Allawi believes they are among the issues being discussed between the two sides. As for whether they are contentious or unresolved files, he said that depends on the course of Syrian-French relations, noting that part of them was resolved during President al-Sharaa’s previous visit to France.

For his part, Wael Alwan, a researcher at the Jusoor Center for Studies, considers complex issues such as foreign fighters, including the French, SDF integration, the chemical weapons file, and counterterrorism to remain security files that France follows directly at the regional level, not only at the Syrian level.