Today Dr Bashar al-Assad (34) will be sworn in as President of Syria, formalising the first ever transfer of power from father to son in an Arab republic.
Last week's parliamentary confirmation of Dr Bashar, as he is called by ordinary Syrians, was the final constitutional step in the handover.
While the grooming of the young man for the top job began in 1994, the late president Hafez al-Assad never named his son as successor.
In an interview with the Egyptian daily, al-Ahram, published on Saturday, the Syrian Defence Minister, Gen Mustafa Tlass, said Dr Bashar was chosen "out of respect" for his father, who ruled for 30 years, and for the pragmatic reason that since "the old guard's average age was approaching 69 years, we would have to get a new president every two years". This was "not in the interest of stability", he said.
The rule of Dr Bashar is founded on the three pillars which sustained his father's dominance for 30 years: the Ba'ath Party, the army and the alliance between the majority Sunni Muslims and the minority Christian and Alawite communities.
Since Dr Bashar became his father's presumed heir, opponents were removed, particularly from posts in the army and intelligence services.
Dr Bashar, an ophthalmologist who specialised in London, founded the country's Computer Society and introduced the Internet and mobile phones to traditionally isolationist Syria. He was put in charge of the anti-corruption drive which has led to the arrest of former ministers, officials, deputies, directors of public companies and businessmen.
In May the dismissed prime minister, Mr Mahmoud Zou'bi, committed suicide after he was expelled from the ruling party and summoned to appear before a court.
Dr Bashar's connection with this campaign won him the support of ordinary Syrians who supported him in the July 10th presidential referendum in which he won 97 per cent of the vote.
As the man in charge of Syria's relations with Lebanon, Dr Bashar oversaw the presidential election of the former army chief, Gen Emile Lahoud, another clean newcomer to politics, and developed close relations with the Hizbullah resistance movement.
A reshuffle in the government of the Prime Minister, Mr Muhammad Mustafa Miro, the former governor of Aleppo, is expected soon and veteran politicians could be replaced by reform-minded technocrats. Mr Miro is carrying out a major restructuring of the banking sector, rewriting the laws on land use and rents and modernising the important agricultural sector.
Without dramatic changes, the Syrian economy will not emerge from stagnation and attain a rate of growth which will outstrip the annual population growth of 3.2 per cent.
Dr Bashar has expressed his readiness to resume peace talks with Israel at the point where negotiations ended last January. While he insists that Israel must withdraw from all of the Golan, the new President may be prepared to consider a formula which might satisfy Israel's demand for control of the waters of Lake Tiberias while restoring Syrian sovereignty to this sensitive area.
He may also be more prepared than his austere father to make public relations gestures which would encourage the Israeli public to support a peace deal with Damascus.
Ordinary Syrians look forward to an end to the regional conflict so the country can use its resources for development instead of armament.