If ubiquity and handshakes were the only measures of success, Ahmed al-Sharaa would be diplomat of the year.

Since he formally became president of Syria on 29 January 2025, the former leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham – a jihadist group with an al-Qaida lineage – has made a total of 21 public international trips to 13 countries. These include a visit to the UN general assembly, the climate change conference in Brazil, and numerous Arab summits.

In the latest sign of the goodwill directed towards Syria’s rebirth, envoys from all 15 members of the UN security council were in Damascus last week to mark the anniversary of the fall of Bashar al-Assad . The display of unity was a remarkable moment: since 2011 no issue has divided the security council more bitterly than Syria.

The visit was a

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