Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa’s debut at the United Nations this week was met with fascination, excitement and optimism, even as Syria’s road to fully joining the international community is fraught with pitfalls.

On Wednesday, al-Sharaa became the first Syrian head of state to address the U.N. General Assembly in nearly 60 years, presenting his new government as triumphing over a murderous dictatorship, but needing global support to rebuild after decades of repression and violence.

“Syria has transformed from an exporter of crisis to an opportunity for peace, for Syria and the region,” the interim president said.

Al-Sharaa’s historic trip to New York underscored his own transformation from militant to statesman, after leading the revolution to oust longtime Syrian strongman Bashar Assad in December.

“I think right now, Syria is the country of the hour. Ahmed al-Sharaa is the man of the hour,” said Kenneth Pollack, vice president for policy at the Middle East Institute (MEI). The think tank, which is based in Washington, D.C., hosted al-Sharaa for an invitation-only panel discussion in Midtown Manhattan on Tuesday, drawing nearly 300 people, exceeding the capacity of the venue.

The day before, al-Sharaa had filled the main stage at the Concordia Summit at the Sheraton Hotel in Times Square. Dozens of attendees watched from the overflow room to hear firsthand how a man — once jailed by American forces in Iraq for his membership in al Qaeda — had become the revolutionary hero of his country.

“What a leader needs is optimism, a deep belief that you are defending a noble cause,” al-Sharaa, speaking softly in Arabic, said in conversation with Ret. Gen. David Petraeus, the former CIA director who had commanded U.S. forces in Iraq.

While al-Sharaa technically remains a designated terrorist in the U.S., both former President Biden and President Trump have moved toward engagement.

In December, Biden withdrew a $10 million bounty for al-Sharaa’s arrest, and Trump announced in May he would move to lift all U.S. sanctions on Syria. The Trump administration has also moved to lift the terrorist designation on al-Sharaa’s militant group, Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham.

Al-Sharaa’s main message to audiences in New York was that he is determined to bring Syria back into the international community after........

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