In Syria, the United States appears to be shifting away from its maximum isolation strategy toward limited engagement with Damascus in order to secure t he gains it’s made in the country toward preventing an Islamic State resurgence . On Oct. 18, The Wall Street Journal reported that the top White House counterterrorism official, Kash Patel, had traveled to Syria earlier this year to participate in direct negotiations regarding the release of American journalist Austin Tice and other U.S. citizens who are being held hostage by the Syrian government. The report also said Patel delivered a personal letter from U.S. President Donald Trump to Syrian President Bashar al Assad in March, breaking nearly a decade of diplomatic isolation between the two governments. These actions come as the United States increasingly faces the prospect that to achieve its objectives in Syria, it will need to have limited engagement with its government.