A State Department spokesman said top U.S. diplomats from the Biden administration will travel to Damascus on Friday to meet with the new Syrian authorities led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). rulers.
Diplomats will also seek information on the whereabouts of missing American journalist Austin Tice.
Deputy Secretary of State for Middle Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf, former special envoy for Syria Daniel Rubinstein and the Biden administration's top envoy for hostage negotiations Roger Carstens are the first U.S. diplomats to travel to Damascus since Syrian opposition militias overthrew oppressive President Bashar al – Assad.
The visit comes as Western governments gradually open channels to HTS and its leader Ahmed al-Sharay and begin debating whether to remove the group's terrorist designation. The American delegation's trip follows contacts with France and Great Britain in recent days.
The spokesman said that during the meetings, U.S. officials will discuss with HTS representatives a set of principles, such as inclusivity and respect for minority rights, that Washington wants to include in Syria's political transition.
Journalist kidnapped in 2012
The delegation will also work to obtain new information about Tice, who was taken prisoner during a reporting trip to Syria in August 2012, and other American citizens who disappeared during the Assad regime.
“They will engage directly with the Syrian people, including members of civil society, activists, diverse community members, and other Syrian voices, about their vision for the country's future and how the United States can help them,” a department spokesman said.
“They also plan to meet with HTS representatives to discuss the transition rules approved by the United States and regional partners in Aqaba, Jordan,” the spokesman said.
The United States severed diplomatic relations with Syria and closed its embassy in Damascus in 2012.
In a shocking moment for the Middle East, Syrian rebels took control of Damascus on December 8, forcing Assad to flee after more than 13 years of civil war, ending his family's decades-long rule.
The lightning offensive raised doubts about whether the rebels would be able to ensure orderly transit
The US considers the rebel leader a terrorist
Forces led by Ahmed Al-Sharaa – better known as Abu Mohammed Al-Golani – replaced Assad's family rule with a three-month transitional government that ruled a rebel enclave in Syria's northwestern Idlib province.
Washington designated Al-Sharaa a terrorist in 2013, claiming that Al-Qaeda in Iraq had commissioned him to overthrow Assad's rule and establish Islamic sharia law in Syria. It said the Nusra Front, the predecessor of HTS, carried out suicide attacks that killed civilians and espoused a brutal sectarian vision.
US President Joe Biden and his top advisers have described Assad's overthrow as a historic opportunity for the Syrian people, who have lived for decades under his oppressive rule, but also warned that the country faces a period of risk and uncertainty.
Washington remains concerned that the extremist group ISIS could use this moment to resurrect itself and wants to avoid any clashes in the country's northeast between Turkish-backed rebel factions and U.S.-allied Kurdish militias.