President Donald Trump announced while in Saudi Arabia on May 14, 2025, that the United States would lift sanctions on Syria. The turnaround was a huge victory for the government of Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa as he attempts to consolidate power nearly six months on from his movement’s stunning toppling of the longtime regime of Bashar al Assad.

But it wasn’t all down to Syria lobbying on its own behalf. In announcing the policy shift, Trump largely attributed the shift to his Saudi hosts as well as Turkey. Both nations are longtime Assad foes who quickly championed al-Sharaa and have been pushing the U.S. to normalize ties with Syria’s new government.

Turkey, whose resources and land have been heavily affected by instability in neighboring Syria, was particularly instrumental in pushing Trump to accept the post-Assad government, even over objections from Israel.

As experts in international relations and Turkish law and politics, we believe the developments in Syria point to the outsized role a small-to-middle power like Turkey can have in regional and international matters. That is particularly true in the Middle East, where world powers such as the U.S. are perceived to have a declining and at times unpredictable influence.

After 13 years of devastating civil war, Syria faces a slew of large challenges, including the immediate task of state building. Not only is violence still readily apparent in Syria itself – as the recent killing of Alawites, allegedly by government forces, or fighters aligned with them, showed – but neighboring Israel has also repeatedly attacked positions in Syria in an attempt to weaken the new government. To Israel’s government, a strong, militarized Syria would pose a threat, particularly in regard to the unstable border at the Golan........

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