This work examines the impact of the war on the foreign policy of the Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria, by dissecting some of the old and new instruments and resources that uphold the regional and international agendas of the Syrian regime, contributing to its survival. The evolution of Damascus’ agency, contingent on context, has produced a particular behaviour, which includes the choice of economic, strategic, political, and discursive instruments. The argument is that Syria’s external behaviour since 2011 must be apprehended in relation to its statist capabilities as a quasi-state, and to the authoritarian character of its regime. Both structural elements have implications for how we conceive of the foreign policy tools that can be exploited in times of war and occupation.