US hopes Syria elections will come ‘as soon as possible’ after Al Shara signals four-year timeline

Washington wants to see new Syria rebuilt 'in spirit' of UN Security Council Resolution 2254, official tells The National

Syrians celebrate in the Damascus Old City on December 13 after rebel fighters removed president Bashar Al Assad. Reuters

The US, still considering new rules of engagement with post-Bashar Al Assad Syria, has emphasised it wants to see Damascus begin the democratic process “as soon as possible”, after de facto leader Ahmad Al Shara indicated a longer transition timeline.

A US official told The National on Monday that Syria's elections “should be free and fair, and carried out in a transparent and inclusive manner”.

“We hope these conditions will be in place as soon as feasibly possible,” the official said.

The response comes after Mr Al Shara stoked concerns at the weekend when he told Al Arabiya that Syria would not hold elections for another four years, and that it may not ratify a constitution for three years.

Mr Al Shara said the elongated timeline was because a democratic election would require a comprehensive census – a daunting task for a country at the centre of one of the largest displacement crises in the world.

The UN's 2025 projections show that there are 7.2 million internally displaced people in Syria and 6.2 million refugees living abroad.

Mr Al Shara said that UN Security Council Resolution 2254 – the international community’s guidepost for a peaceful transition in Syria – was not viable now that Mr Al Assad had been removed.

But the US official said that Washington hopes to see Syria rebuilt “in the spirit of UN SC 2254” – a slight softening on its years-long commitment to the resolution.

“Ultimately, we would like to see a Syria that is inclusive and protects the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all Syrians, including women and minority groups,” the US official said.

Washington has largely indicated that it is approaching relations with the new Syria cautiously. It continues to list Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, the group Mr Al Shara leads, as a terrorist organisation.

But there have been signs of good-faith engagement with the new ruling coalition in Damascus. Barbara Leaf, departing assistant secretary of Near Eastern affairs, said during a recent diplomatic visit to Damascus that the US was removing the $10 million bounty from Mr Al Shara’s head, but declined to say whether outright normalisation with HTS would occur.

The comments from Washington also come after a diplomatic rush in Damascus that included a delegation visit from Ukrainian officials.

Ukraine is at war with Russia, which for years propped up the Assad regime in Damascus. The trip saw officials raise the Ukrainian flag at the official embassy and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy later said that restoring relations with the new government in Syria would be the “right step”.

Since the removal of the Assad regime in December, HTS has advocated working with other rebel factions to establish a unified administration. It has also sought to distance itself from its Al Qaeda-linked roots, repeatedly condemning sectarianism and vowing to protect Syrian minority groups.