Thursday, May 22, 2025, 10:00 – 11:00 AM EDT - Zoom Webinar + Livestream
Syria’s Transitional Government: Challenges, Policies, and Prospects
A Keynote Conversation with Three Syrian Ministers
by Arab Center Washington DC
This webinar will also be livestreamed on our website
Speakers
Abdulsalam Haykal, Minster of Communication and Information Technology, Syrian Transitional Government, Syrian Businessman and Tech Entrepreneur
Hind Kabawat, Minster of Social Affairs and Labor, Syrian Transitional Government, Former Professor and Lawyer
Hamza al-Mustafa, Minster of Information, Syrian Transitional Government, Syrian Academic, Researcher, and Media Executive
Moderator
Khalil E. Jahshan, Executive Director, Arab Center Washington DC
About the Webinar
The Syrian Transitional Government was established on March 29th, 2025, following the Constitutional Declaration for the Transitional Period, which was announced two weeks earlier and established a transitional legal framework for the post-Assad era. Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, formed a 23-member cabinet to replace the caretaker government that was put in place in December 2024 after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
The new government structure is dominated by al-Sharaa’s closest allies from Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and the Salvation Government, in addition to a few technocrats and civil society leaders and even some former ministers from the ousted Assad regime. While HTS retained the most powerful posts, including foreign ministry, defense, interior, justice, energy, and local administration, among others, the appointments included a number of independent figures and individuals from minority communities (Alawites, Christians, Kurds, and Druze), although no members of the Turkmen or Ismaili communities were named and only one woman was included. The government model does not include a prime minister and grants the president direct oversight of the ministries.
As Syria's transitional government faces a multitude of challenges, Arab Center Washington DC (ACW) is convening a high-level ministerial keynote discussion with three of the independent new ministers in the Syrian government. The conversation will address the significance of the new government and its makeup, the implications of the constitutional declaration and prospects for a democratic process, the various challenges facing the country, and how the transitional government plans to address those issues and rebuild Syria.
What are the plans for recovery and reconstruction efforts, including for infrastructure, public services, and economic development? How will the government approach the issue of transitional justice? How can the new government achieve political inclusion and wider representation and legitimacy? How will the government address the security breakdown and the fragmentation of the country, with some areas under the control of armed factions? What are the prospects for the agreement with the SDF? How can the rule of law be implemented and citizens be protected? What programs should be put in place for the 12 million Syrian refugees and internally displaced? What is the impact of foreign aggression and interventions on the future of Syria, including by Turkey and Israel, among others? How can the government manage and fund its plans and programs while navigating sanctions and the terrorist designation and past of HTS? What are the government's plans for regional integration and relations and international foreign policy? What is the future of US-Syria relations following the announcement by US president Donald Trump of lifting US sanctions?
Register to Attend or watch to Livestream on the Arab Center Washington DC website