For eight years, the Syrian civil war appeared over. Turkish-backed rebel fighters held their lines, but Bashar Assad’s regime controlled most major cities. Though Syria might not have been united under a single government, Assad’s adversaries considered the war over.

Many in Congress considered Assad anathema, but even his Arab adversaries had begun to consider rapprochement. On May 19, 2023, Assad traveled to Saudi Arabia to attend the Arab League summit, the first time he had received an invitation since the Syrian civil war erupted in 2011. A year later, he attended again, traveling to Bahrain.