Hezbollah's secretary-general says he sees no obstacle to meeting Syria's new government, in a shift after years of fighting alongside the ousted Assad regime.
Hezbollah and Syria's new government appear to be exchanging signals of willingness to engage after years of confrontation on the battlefield. Hezbollah's secretary-general Naim Qassem said recently that he saw no objection to holding a public meeting with Syria's new leadership when the timing was suitable for both sides. The statement appeared to respond to an earlier opening from Syrian President Ahmad al-Shara, who suggested dialogue with the party was possible if it served Syrian and Lebanese interests.
Hezbollah fought alongside Bashar al-Assad's regime throughout Syria's civil war, engaging in fierce clashes with opposition factions that now form the basis of Syria's new government. Assad's fall in December 2024 cost the party dearly: it lost a close ally in Damascus and a strategic corridor to Iran. Syria's new authorities have declared that extending their control over the country's territory and borders is their top priority.
Yasir al-Shuhada, a member of Syria's People's Council, reads Qassem's initiative as a shift in Hezbollah's rhetoric toward the new Syria and a signal of readiness to move from rupture toward political dialogue. Damascus, however, does not view the prospect as dialogue for its own sake, al-Shuhada said, but rather as a means to concrete benefit for both Syria and Lebanon. No direct communication channels between Damascus and Hezbollah have been publicly announced, and it remains difficult to confirm indirect messages or mediation without official confirmation.
Qassem's statement came during a difficult period for Hezbollah, which continues to fight a harsh war with Israel that has inflicted heavy military and political losses. The party, listed as terrorist by several countries, faces pressure over the future of its weapons inside Lebanon following the government's decision to restrict arms to the state. Political analyst Khaled al-Hajj told al-Hurra that Hezbollah senses its weak and precarious position, and is therefore trying to open relations with Damascus.
Some analysts suggest Hezbollah may ultimately be seeking a relationship that would allow it to use Syria again as a corridor for weapons and money. This aim collides directly with Damascus's firm position against allowing its territory to be used for arms smuggling. Since al-Assad's fall, Syria announced it had thwarted weapons-smuggling operations bound for Hezbollah. In May, it announced the dismantling of a cell linked to the party that was planning activities inside Syria, a claim Hezbollah denied.
Syria's current priorities, according to al-Shuhada, centre on securing the Syrian-Lebanese border, stopping smuggling of weapons and drugs, and preventing use of its territory as a corridor for any military or security activity outside state authority. Syrian political analyst Milad al-Attrash contends that Hezbollah needs Damascus at a moment when Damascus has no need to return to the past.
Hezbollah faces a Syrian government intent on recovering full sovereignty over its borders and territory, al-Attrash argues, and may need contact with it to manage security and border matters and to avoid miscalculation. Damascus, however, has no need for Hezbollah as a military force and certainly does not want to recreate the relationship that existed under the previous regime. This extends to the question of Hezbollah's weapons, which Damascus considers an internal Lebanese matter to be handled through state institutions, not something requiring Syrian military intervention to disarm the party.
Syria's new President al-Shara has reiterated this position on several occasions, despite contrary suggestions from U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump indicated that the Syrian president could take charge in Lebanon, and told Fox News in July that al-Shara would be more precise than the Israelis in dealing with Hezbollah. Al-Shara responded by stressing that Syria would not intervene in Lebanon except at the request of the Lebanese government, and rejected any interference in Lebanese affairs.
Since taking power, al-Shara has moved to reorganise Syria's relationship with Lebanon through official institutions rather than back channels. The gap between what Hezbollah may be seeking and what Damascus is willing to offer appears substantial. Hezbollah's historical role as a security actor in Syria, built during decades of Assad's rule, carries no equivalent weight with a government focused on consolidating state control. Where dialogue occurs, it will likely be narrowly focused on border security and preventing smuggling rather than restoring the strategic partnership of the past.
