Wassim Nasr: My Inside Account of Macron’s Syria Visit

French war reporter and global jihadism expert Wassim Nasr was part of the presidential press party during Emmanuel Macron’s recent visit to Damascus. He shares his first-hand account not only of what happened between Macron and Syrian president Ahmad al-Sharaa during the visit, but also what he discovered afterwards, during a trip to Aleppo and to the northern town of Kobane.

Wassim and Thomas discuss:

What it was like inside Macron’s presidential delegation to Syria

France–Syria relations after the fall of Bashar al-Assad

Macron and Ahmed al-Sharaa at the Umayyad Mosque and Mount Qasioun

Islamic State bombings during Macron’s Damascus visit

French investment in Syrian reconstruction, energy, ports and transport

Aleppo’s security, political representation and slow post-war recovery

Kobani, SDF integration, PKK influence and Arab–Kurdish tensions

Ahmed al-Sharaa’s Islamist pragmatism and Syria’s dependence on his leadership

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Conflicted is a Message Heard production.

Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren.

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