The Foreign Service Journal, October 2009

O C T O B E R 2 0 0 9 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 13 ( www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/mea st/07/26/us.middle.east/ ). Former President George W. Bush had with- drawn the last U.S. ambassador from Damascus in 2005 in light of plausible accusations of Syrian involvement in the assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri earlier that year. While Pres. Obama’s decision re- flects his longstanding commitment to pursuing dialogue, the move still comes as something of a shock. As re- cently as this spring, pundits believed that such a step was still a way off ( www.brookings.edu/articles/2009/ 0319_syria_saab.aspx ). Although Damascus has not come forward with any clear concessions, its responses to recent regional events — for instance, this year’s Lebanese leg- islative elections, the destabilization of Iran, and entreaties from Israel via Turkey to resume Middle East peace negotiations — have revealed a possi- ble unclenching of the Syrian fist ( www.usip.org/countries-continen ts/asia/syria ). Such shifts, especially the weaken- ing of the Iran-Syria alliance ( http:// blog.oup.com/2009/07/iran_syria/ ) , allow Damascus to regain its centrality to Middle Eastern affairs while open- ing itself more directly to new path- ways — perhaps even a Washing- ton-led peace process. As Pres. Obama has asserted, Syria will play a vital role in the future of Iraqi security (its border serves as a gateway for international insurgents, among other concerns), Iranian-Amer- ican relations and Arab-Israeli peace discussions. Such a pivotal state cer- tainly merits ambassadorial contacts to facilitate the high-level diplomacy that will be needed. However, althoughWashington has decided to nominate a new ambassa- dor and resume dialogue, this is only a tentative first step in a long and deli- cate process. Any major changes in the region could jeopardize the precarious, convergent pathways of U.S. and Syr- ian interests ( www.mcclatchydc.com/ commentary/story/71793.html ). And in such a fragile environment, it behooves pundits and politicians alike to closely follow developments in Damascus ( www.cfr.org/region/414/ syria.html ). For now, both sides celebrate a vital and constructive change in Middle Eastern relations. In July Syrian polit- ical writer Sami Moubayed published an open letter to the future ambassa- dor: “With great pleasure we welcome you to Damascus, a city of lights, his- tory, peace and passion. Damascus is a warm host, and has been good to all your predecessors from the days of George Wadsworth during World War II, all the way to your immediate pred- ecessor, Margaret Scobey” ( www.fw- magazine.com/category/5/279 ). With any luck, this attitude will en- dure, whatever lies ahead. Syrian Ambassador to the U.S. Imad Moustapha has long voiced his expectation and eagerness that any post-Bush administration would seek to re-establish full Syrian diplomatic relations ( http://foreignpolicy.com /story/cms.php?story_id=4544&pa ge=1 ). The tech-savvy ambassador keeps a personal blog that will pre- sumably express his thoughts on the current form such reconnections are taking ( http://imad_moustapha.blo gs.com/ ) . For more background on U.S.-Syr- ian relations, see www.usip.org/res ources/issues-syria . ■ This edition of Cybernotes was com- piled by Editorial Intern Mark Hay. C Y B E R N O T E S WWW.FSJOURNAL.ORG When contacting an advertiser, kindly mention the Foreign Service Journal. Click on the Marketplace tab on the marquee AFSPA afspa.org AKA stay-aka.com American Public University amu.apus.edu Clements International clements.com Cort Furniture cort1.com Diplomatic Auto. Sales diplosales.com Hirshorn Company, The hirshorn.com SDFCU sdfcu.org Strategic Studies Quarterly au.af.mil/au/ssq Tetra Tech tetratech.com WJD wjdpm.com