Italy is back in Damascus and its government sees itself as the instigator of a thaw in relations between the European Union (EU) and the Syrian regime. Twelve years after the departure of its last ambassador, Rome has appointed a permanent representative in the Syrian capital: the diplomat Stefano Ravagnan, responsible for the Syrian portfolio at the Italian foreign affairs ministry.
Unlike the chargé d'affaires he replaces, who has been based in Beirut since 2018, he will reside in Damascus. As a plenipotentiary minister without the formal title of ambassador, he will not have to present his credentials to the dictator Bashar al-Assad, but his appointment, effective after the summer, implies a de facto rise in rank for Italy's representation.
"Our decision is part of Italy's desire to rethink the EU's strategy on Syria. The situation on the ground suggests a more pragmatic commitment," was the explanation from Rome. The aim is apparently to establish new relations, "to prevent the socio-economic collapse of Syria from generating a new wave of refugees, particularly towards neighboring countries." However, it is unclear how this position will translate into concrete action.
Having reconquered two-thirds of the country with the help of Iran and Russia between 2016 and 2018, Assad's regime has consolidated its grip on power. The destruction of infrastructure and the industrial fabric by bombing, the international quarantine imposed on the government, which prevents any reconstruction, and sanctions by the US and the European Union, have led to 90% of the population living below the poverty line. But this crisis has not brought about any concessions by Assad, who stubbornly refuses any democratic transition or any gesture of appeasement, such as the release of prisoners.
"For Italy, the return of a representative to Damascus is a diplomatic coup. It's about shining a spotlight on an issue on which nobody is moving. There's not necessarily a strategic vision behind it," said Maria Luisa Fantappie, head of the Mediterranean, Middle East, and Africa program at the Istituto Affari Internazionali, an influential research center in Rome. However, the Italian approach has already produced results. In mid-July, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, together with his Austrian, Croatian, Cypriot, Czech, Greek, Slovak, and Slovenian counterparts, signed a letter addressed to EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell asking him to "review and assess" his approach to Syria.
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