Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani[b] is a Syrian diplomat and politician who is currently serving as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates in the Syrian transitional government since 21 December 2024 following the fall of the Assad regime. During his time as foreign minister, al-Shaibani became the first Syrian official to visit Russia post-Assad regime, and first Syrian official to visit the United States in 25 years.
He moved with his family to reside in Damascus and graduated from Damascus University in 2009 with a degree in English Language and Literature from the Faculty of Arts and Humanities.[4][3]
He earned a master's degree in Political Science and International Relations from Istanbul Sabahattin Zaim University in 2022 and was pursuing a PhD in the same field until 2024.[2] He is also completing the final stage of an MBA program from an American university.[3]
During the war, al-Shaibani operated under aliases, including "Naseem", "Abu Aisha", "Abu Ammar al-Shami", "Hussam al-Shafi'i", and most notably "Zaid al-Attar". Before his current role, he participated in founding the Syrian Salvation Government in 2017, establishing and heading up its Political Affairs Administration. In this role, he engaged with representatives from the United Nations, major international organizations, and diplomatic officials.[2][6]
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates
Al-Shaibani meets with UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 12 January 2025
He immediately began shaping the foreign policy and diplomatic relations of the new government, which adopted a different approach from the previous Ba'athist regime.[9] He also attended international meetings that the former government had been barred from due to the diplomatic isolation resulting from the Syrian civil war, which stemmed from the Ba'athist regime’s violent crackdown on the 2011 Syrian revolution.[10][11]
Al-Shaibani undertook diplomatic visits to various countries, including Gulf states,[12][13] and most notably Turkey, with whom relations had been severed for nearly 14 years.[14][15] He also visited the headquarters of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, during which he pledged that the Syrian government would destroy any remaining chemical weapons in the country.[16]
On 29 March 2025, a transitional government was formed, in which al-Shaibani maintained his position.[22] On 10 April 2025, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul visited Damascus and met with al-Shaibani. During the meeting, both sides signed a formal agreement to establish diplomatic relations, which included plans to open embassies and exchange diplomatic missions.[23][24] The agreement made Syria the last United Nations member state, outside of North Korea, to establish diplomatic relations with South Korea.[25]
On 15 May 2025, al-Shaibani held a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Antalya, Turkey.[27] The meeting took place two days after U.S. President Donald Trump announced his decision to lift sanctions on Syria and initiate the normalization of bilateral relations.[28]
↑ "من هو أسعد الشيباني وزير الخارجية في الحكومة السورية الجديدة"[Who is Asaad al-Shaibani, the Minister of Foreign Affairs in the New Syrian Government?]. Journalist Zeno Yasaer Mhamid (in Arabic). 21 December 2023. Archived from the original on 11 April 2025. Retrieved 21 December 2024.
↑ "أسعد الشيباني وزيرا للخارجية السورية.. فمن هو؟"[Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani appointed Foreign Minister, who is he?]. Erem News (in Arabic). 21 December 2024. Archived from the original on 21 December 2024. Retrieved 21 December 2024.
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