WASHINGTON (Realist English). Tom Barrack, the former U.S. ambassador to Turkey and longtime confidant of President Donald Trump, announced on Friday that he has been appointed U.S. Special Envoy for Syria. In a statement posted on X, Barrack said he was honored to support Secretary of State Marco Rubio in implementing Trump’s vision for “a prosperous Middle East and a stable Syria.”
“President Trump has outlined his clear vision of a prosperous Middle East and a stable Syria at peace with itself and its neighbours,” Barrack wrote. “As President Trump’s representative in Türkiye, I am proud to assume the role of the U.S. Special Envoy for Syria.”
The announcement follows Trump’s surprise declaration in Riyadh last week, where he announced a full lifting of U.S. sanctions on Syria, framing it as an opportunity to “give them a chance at greatness.” Trump also met with Ahmed al-Sharaa, Syria’s interim president, and described him as “impressive.”
Barrack elaborated on the policy shift: “The cessation of sanctions against Syria will preserve the integrity of our primary objective — the enduring defeat of ISIS — and will give the people of Syria a chance for a better future. Together with regional partners, including Türkiye and the Gulf, we are enabling the Syrian government to restore peace, security, and the hope of prosperity.”
Possible reopening of U.S. embassy in Damascus
According to Reuters, Barrack participated in a high-level meeting between U.S. and Turkish officials at the State Department on Tuesday, where counterterrorism cooperation and Syria sanctions were key topics. That same day, Secretary Rubio confirmed that the U.S. is considering reopening its embassy in Damascus, which has been closed for over a decade.
“We don’t have an embassy in Syria — it’s operating out of Turkey — but we need to help them,” Rubio told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He emphasized that the primary obstacle remains security threats from non-state armed groups, not from the new transitional authorities.
Rubio said U.S. embassy personnel in Ankara would work directly with Syrian officials to assess reconstruction and governance needs. “It’s entirely driven by security concerns,” he noted.
Who is Tom Barrack?
Barrack, 78, is a private equity magnate of Lebanese descent whose grandparents immigrated to the U.S. over a century ago. He is best known as the founder of Colony Capital and a close Trump ally, having chaired the president’s 2016 inaugural committee. His longstanding business connections include partnerships with Gulf sovereign wealth funds such as the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and the Qatar Investment Authority.
Barrack has maintained deep ties to both the Trump Organization and the broader Middle East investment landscape since the 1980s.
Legal controversies and acquittal
Barrack’s new appointment comes two years after his acquittal in a high-profile federal case. In 2021, he was arrested and charged with acting as an unregistered agent for the UAE, obstructing justice, and making false statements to federal investigators. Prosecutors alleged that Barrack had used his access to Trump to promote the UAE’s foreign policy agenda, as first reported by Middle East Eye in 2018.
In 2022, a federal jury in Brooklyn cleared Barrack of all charges, concluding that he had not acted improperly or misled authorities. Throughout the proceedings, Barrack denied any wrongdoing and maintained that his actions were lawful and transparent.
Tom Barrack’s return to diplomatic prominence marks a new phase in U.S. policy toward Syria, one defined less by punitive isolation and more by regional reintegration and realpolitik. With sanctions lifted and a reopening of the U.S. embassy under consideration, the Trump administration appears to be signaling a strategic reset — prioritizing stability over regime change. Barrack’s appointment, given his personal ties and business acumen in the region, is not just symbolic; it positions him as a key architect of Washington’s post-conflict engagement strategy in Syria.
