German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock speaks during a press conference in Damascus, Syria, March 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi

Germany reopened its embassy in Damascus on Thursday, 13 years since its closure during the early days of Syria’s civil war, as both countries work to strengthen their bilateral relations.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock visited Damascus — her second trip since the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December — to mark Berlin’s establishment of official diplomatic relations with the new Syrian government.

“I am here in Syria for the second time in around 10 weeks because the country and its future are on a knife edge,” Baerbock said at a news conference. “We can’t predict what will happen in a few months or perhaps a few weeks’ time.”

As a show of support for Syria’s nascent regime, Berlin reopened its embassy in the country in an effort to improve diplomatic relations, while pledging economic assistance and sanctions relief to aid the new government and the country’s reconstruction efforts.

Of the European Union’s 27 member states, only Italy reopened its embassy last year before Assad’s fall, while Spain did so after his ouster.

In a statement, Baerbock said her trip was intended to convey the message that “a political new beginning between Europe and Syria, between Germany and Syria, is possible.”

She also said there are “clear expectations that there is freedom, security, and opportunity in Syria for all people — for women and men, for people belonging to all ethnic groups and religions.”

Earlier this month, clashes between fighters loyal to Assad and forces aligned with Syria’s new rulers sparked the worst violence since the new government seized power, leaving over 1,000 people dead. In a series of confrontations, fighters supporting the new Syrian government carried out mass executions of Alawite Muslim civilians.

According to Syria’s interior ministry, the pro-government fighters conducted “sweeping operations” to dismantle the last “remnants” of Assad’s regime, targeting primarily adult men.

However, the ensuing mass killing of Alawites, who comprise roughly 10 percent of the Syrian population, has raised concern among the international community about the safety of minority groups in the country.

Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa decried the massacres, claiming they undermined his efforts to unite the country and vowing to seek retribution for the violence.

“Syria is a state of law. The law will take its course on all,” Sharaa told Reuters. “We fought to defend the oppressed, and we won’t accept that any blood be shed unjustly, or go without punishment or accountability, even among those closest to us.”

In late January, Sharaa became Damascus’s transitional president after leading a rebel campaign that ousted Assad, whose Iran-backed rule had strained ties with the Arab world during the nearly 14-year Syrian war.

The collapse of Assad’s regime was the result of an offensive spearheaded by Sharaa’s Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group, a former al-Qaeda affiliate.

During her visit on Thursday, Baerbock said the recent clashes had “massively cost confidence” among the international community. Germany’s top diplomat emphasized that the new Syrian government “must have control over the actions of the groups in its own ranks and bring those responsible to account.”

After the recent clashes, Syria’s new Islamist-led government — backed by Turkey — and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militant group reached a ceasefire agreement.

Under the new deal between the Kurdish-led, US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Syrian government, the SDF will be integrated into Damascus’s institutions. In exchange, the agreement gives the Syrian government control over SDF-held civilian and military sites in the northeast region of the country.

Baerbock praised the “historic” agreement and emphasized the importance of including other groups to ensure they feel like they are “part of a new Syria.”

Since Assad’s fall, the new Syrian government has sought to strengthen ties with Arab and Western leaders. Damascus’s new diplomatic relationships reflect a distancing from its previous allies, Iran and Russia.

The new Syrian government appears focused on reassuring the West and working to get sanctions lifted, which date back to 1979 when the US labeled Syria a state sponsor of terrorism and were significantly increased following Assad’s violent response to the anti-government protests.

The Assad regime’s brutal crackdown on opposition protests in 2011 sparked the Syrian civil war, during which Syria was suspended from the Arab League for more than a decade.

Earlier this week, European Union countries pledged to continue supporting Syria’s new leadership through both financial aid and sanctions relief, despite an outbreak of sectarian violence threatening the country’s stability.

Germany committed to providing €300 million in support for food, health, and other essential services for the Syrian population.

“As Europeans, we stand together for the people of Syria, for a free and peaceful Syria,” Baerbock said during the annual donor conference for Syria in Brussels.