While field and military developments unfold in Syria, Western activity in the country is ongoing. Heavy battles continue in different areas, which entered its fifth year of a multiple-battlefront civil war in March. Western visitors are flocking to Damascus in official capacities, private visits to political figures or European civilian delegations. These trips convey different political, security, popular and civil messages. The first remarkable visit in this regard took place at the end of February, when a French parliamentary delegation arrived in Damascus. This step's political dimensions, preparations and implementation had been discussed at length.
As soon as talk about the visit wound down, another came to pass: a Belgian parliamentary delegation set foot in Damascus on March 24 and then in Beirut, carrying reams of political inquiries.
