Aided by the emerging dissensions among the victorious Diadochi of Ipsus, he left the Thracian Chersonese for the Middle East in 299-298 BCE, where he reunited with his former enemy, Seleucus I, to whom he gave his daughter Stratonice in marriage.

[1] Demetrius was not a stranger to this defeat: he broke through the enemy lines and advanced decisively against Antiochus, the son of Seleucus, but this cut him off from the main battle, and he had to witness, helplessly, the complete destruction of the Antigonid phalanx and the death of his father.

Clearly, Demetrius aimed to extract himself from Anatolia as swiftly as possible; indeed, he found part of his well-preserved fleet in the city, allowing him to reengage in the Hellenistic and Aegean world and to reach the two remaining centers of his power, Athens and Cyprus.

[5] During this period, he likely went to Corinth to recruit mercenaries, and despite the division of his territories and the loss of Athens, he managed to maintain control over Ephesus, certain cities in Phoenicia, Cyprus, and some islands in the Aegean Sea.

[14] This fleet undoubtedly enhanced Demetrius's mobility, and it seems that he crossed the Hellespont with his troops multiple times, capturing Lampsacus at least twice without holding it permanently, indicating his lack of interest in territorial conquest at that moment.

[15] After disembarking his troops, still vastly outnumbered, he embarked on a campaign of asymmetric warfare while enforcing a complete blockade of the Hellespont and capturing settlements, the only known one being Lampsacus.

[14] It appears that more than financial rewards from looting, with Demetrius still receiving funds from his remaining territories, this campaign was a sort of "forward escape" for prestige.

[14] Furthermore, he reasserted himself diplomatically, as in 299-298 BCE, Demetrius left the Chersonese for the Middle East to participate in the marriage of his daughter, Stratonice I, to Seleucus I, the former victor of Ipsus.

[14] It also demonstrated the resilience that Demetrius displayed during one of the most precarious moments of his career and foreshadowed the tireless character that characterized his Greek campaign from 297 to 287 BCE.