Paul Rowe (2007) coined the term ‘neo-millet’ to describe church-state relations in post-1952 Egypt (2007) arguing that it allows the state to deal with minority religious groups through representation by the church leadership (331). Scholars have applied and developed this concept to state-patriarch relations in the Egyptian and Iraqi contexts where there is one dominant Christian denomination (Tadros 2013; Monier 2020). This paper accesses the applicability of the term to the case study of Syria which has numerous Christian denominations and is home to three patriarchs. Under the Baathist regime, the Syrian state has traditionally been seen as integrating minorities including Christians, using the ideology of Syrian nationalism ‘kulna suriyyin’ (Migliorino 2007). However, this study suggests that a dual approach was used by the regime to include Christians not just through state nationalism but also through relationships with church hierarchies. It was the latter that proved prominent when the regime’s survival was challenged by the Syrian Uprising. The paper will focus primarily upon President’s Bashar al-Assad first decade in power but will also provide some insight into the response of church leaders to the Syrian Uprising. The discussion starts by critically engaging the neo-millet term and the contestations around the millet concept (Sharkey 2017; Monier 2022; Tas 2014). It then provides background to the Syrian context before exploring the ways in which a neo-millet system can be seen as operating in Syria in the 2000-2010 period. This is achieved by examining attitudes and positions of the church leaders, state officials, Christian communities and wider society. The analysis focuses on the three components of the millet approach – autonomy, recognition and protection – to determine whether the neo-millet concept is applicable to Syria. Finally, the paper will discuss the impact of a neo-millet approach on church-state-societal relations in Syria and offer an explanation for the support provided by church leaders to the embattled regime during the Syrian Uprising and subsequent civil war. The data is gathered from interview material and participant observation collected in Syria between 2008 and 2010 as well as speeches and statements of church and state officials.