French President Emmanuel Macron and Syrian transitional President Ahmed al-Sharaa declared a new era in bilateral relations at a joint press conference in Damascus on Tuesday, announcing the reappointment of ambassadors for the first time in more than 14 years, signing more than a dozen cooperation agreements, and pledging France as Syria’s principal Western reconstruction partner, even as two bombs exploded near Macron’s hotel while the two leaders were meeting inside the presidential palace.
Al-Sharaa described the summit as a historic milestone and the first French presidential visit to Syria in 18 years. “Today, Syria opens its doors through an equal partnership and as an indispensable bridge linking East and West,” he said. Macron reaffirmed France’s commitment to a sovereign, safe, pluralistic and united Syria, saying nothing could smother the aspirations of the Syrian people, and confirming France would return approximately 51 million euros in assets confiscated from the late Rifaat Assad, former dictator Bashar Assad’s uncle.
Specific agreements covered rebuilding Homs water and electricity infrastructure, technical assistance to Syria’s Central Bank, cargo infrastructure at Damascus International Airport, healthcare, higher education, civil aviation and banking reforms. CMA CGM signed a major maritime, air transport and logistics partnership. TotalEnergies executives accompanied Macron to Damascus. Macron warned al-Sharaa against deploying Syrian forces to Lebanon, while calling on all parties to uphold the rule of law across Syrian territory.
Al-Sharaa is expected to travel to Ankara for a sideline meeting with US President Donald Trump at the NATO summit.
