Since taking power nine years ago, Syrian strongman Bashar Assad has: turned his country into a safe haven and transit corridor for jihadists en route to Iraq; funneled sophisticated munitions to Hezbollah and probably Hamas; sought to build an illicit nuclear reactor with North Korean help; mostly failed to liberalize Syria’s economy and resisted liberalizing its politics; publicly declared that Israel would never “become a legitimate state even if the peace process is implemented”; and ruled while Syrians have been implicated by a U.N. investigator in the 2005 assassination of Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri.

So, naturally, President Obama has made Syria a prime target for diplomacy as part of his new Axis of Engagement.

The President has already restored full diplomatic ties with Damascus that were cut off after the Hariri assassination. Last week, State Department envoy George Mitchell visited Mr. Assad to discuss improved military-to-military ties and easing some sanctions, though others remain in place. Now the Administration believes it can entice Mr. Assad into abandoning some of his bad habits, like sponsoring terrorist groups, meddling in his neighbors’ internal affairs and maintaining close ties with Iran.

“We received assurances that the relations between the two countries should resume on the basis of mutual interests and most importantly of mutual respect,” Syrian deputy foreign minister Fayssal Mekdad told the Journal last week. “We really welcome such a new approach.”

Damascus’s delight is no surprise, but the chances of success here are somewhat lower than Hugo Chavez becoming a capitalist. Since the current president’s father, Hafez Assad, came to power in a coup in 1970, the U.S. has repeatedly imposed sanctions on Syria, withdrawn ambassadors and even shelled Syrian military positions in Lebanon. But the U.S. has also repeatedly sought to engage Syria as a partner—during the 1991 Gulf War against Saddam Hussein, and later as a mediator in failed peace negotiations with Israel. After the fall of Baghdad in 2003, George W. Bush dispatched Colin Powell to Damascus to try to win Mr. Assad’s cooperation. Instead, Syria made itself a safe haven for the terrorists who killed U.S. soldiers.