Syria interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa has met with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace on Wednesday evening, in his first official visit to Europe since taking office following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December 2024.
For al-Sharaa, the visit also offered an opportunity to present a more moderate image to sceptical European countries.
Speaking at a joint press conference, Macron struck a cautious balance between support and firm expectations.
“It now remains for Syria to rise to the challenge of the road towards civil peace and harmony,” he said.
Macron announced that he supports gradually easing sanctions — put in place against al-Assad’s and his regime over the course of the years-long war that ended with his exile to Moscow — contingent on the Syrian interim government’s commitment to justice and reforms.
He said that he would urge the European Union not to renew sanctions on Syria.
Al-Sharaa called the current sanctions “an obstacle” to recovery. “There is no justification for maintaining them,” he argued, noting that they were imposed on al-Assad and that the current government should not bear that burden.
Macron also claimed that the so-called Islamic State group (IS) remained “the most serious threat” to France.
He called on the United States to “maintain” its military operations against the Islamic State group in Syria, and “to lift sanctions” imposed on the country.
Protect all Syrians regardless of their faith, Macron tells al-Sharaa
The US has started withdrawing hundreds of troops from northeastern Syria over the past few weeks.
While stressing that France would not be “giving lessons,” Macron insisted that the Syrian leader must protect “all Syrians regardless of their faith.”
The French leader referred to the attacks in western Syria in March, in which 1,700 people, mostly Alawites, were killed, as well as recent clashes with Druze communities.
The visit has stirred significant debate in French political circles. Al-Sharaa is part of the Islamist rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and remains a controversial figure.
Al-Sharaa is still under a UN travel ban, and France had to request an exemption to permit his entry.
Macron’s decision to receive him has prompted fierce backlash from France’s right and far-right, who condemn the move as legitimising a man with a jihadist past.
Responding to criticism from French parties, Macron dismissed the idea that diplomacy should be limited to hosting allies.
“Have we only ever received people with whom we were in complete agreement?” he asked, claiming the interim government has already taken the first concrete steps towards a more democratic future.
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