In 1958, as he proclaimed the union of Egypt and Syria, Gamal Abdel Nasser declared that Syria was the beating heart of Arabism. At that moment, Syria, the union, and Arabism itself were closer than ever to that truth. What followed has been told and retold, and explained in countless ways.
Nasser was compelled to mourn the first union, after which Syria, unity, and Arabism entered a cycle of coups, secessions, and rule by barracks and tanks. From what happened in Hama and in the Golan Heights to Daraa and the consequences that unfolded there.
These developments marked the worst outcomes of Syria’s, Arabism’s, and unity’s turbulent passages. Syria’s face and identity shifted as it became clear that multiple forces were seeking to remake it. Its historical boundaries eroded, while tendencies toward separation and estrangement from Arabism emerged. Iran entrenched itself at the heart of Syria, and thus at the heart of the region.
Through this, longstanding regional powers returned to shape the country’s new contours, as seen in the Kurdish and Turkish dynamics. Syria and its surroundings were swept into a striking regional cycle.
After all this struggle over Syria, a system that appears capable of stability has come into view. Ahmed al-Sharaa has succeeded in establishing a serious dialogue and fostering optimistic Arab and international relations.
Syria has not witnessed such a scene in decades, and for the first time, a genuine political process is beginning to take shape, even as other countries remain mired in conflicts, disputes, and troubling regional excesses.
The reversal is striking: Syria is regaining a path toward stability and the confidence of states, while others struggle to restore cohesion to their core foundations. Until recently, such an outcome seemed unlikely. Today, it appears increasingly plausible, even if the road remains long.
