Macron in Syria on first post-Assad visit by West European head of state

French President visited the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus alongside Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and signed the guestbook during a visit to Syria, before heading to the NATO summit in Ankara, Türkiye.

The French head of state, the first leader of a Western power to visit Syria, discussed the reconstruction of the war-torn country with his counterpart. Syrian state news agency SANA described the visit as "a pivotal step in the process of restoring Syria's international presence".