• President Trump announces the lifting of Syrian sanctions while praising Syria’s new leader.
• President Ahmad al-Sharaa has met President Trump in Riyadh, the first Syrian president to do so in 25 years.
In a move unthinkable 6 months ago, Syrian president Ahmad Al-Sharaa has met with US president Donald Trump in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, after behind-the-scenes diplomatic exhaustion between Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and the US.
Just yesterday President Trump shocked the international community by announcing he will lift sanctions on Syria to ‘give it a chance’, and less than 24 hours later he meets with Sharaa himself, becoming the second western leader to do so.
After Trump’s Saudi visit, he touched down in Doha, Qatar, as he continues his 4-day Middle East tour.
Before touching down in Doha, he said to reporters regarding Syrian President Sharaa:
“Young, attractive guy. “Tough guy, strong past. “Very strong past, fighter. “He’s got a real shot at holding it together. “I spoke with President Erdoğan, who is very friendly with him. “He feels he’s got a shot of doing a good job. “It’s a torn-up country.”
The visit by Sharaa to Saudi Arabia, on top of the US announcement to lift sanctions, bolsters the legitimacy of the new Syrian government and will likely be something diplomats and government officials in major Western countries and other nations may see as an opportunity to strengthen diplomatic ties further without being vilified or criticised with the same magnitude.
One of the key factors preventing major investment by foreign companies into Syria after the fall of the Assad regime was fear of being unable to navigate around US sanctions.
Now that the sanctions are due to be lifted, they may reconsider, strengthening both the Syrian economy and the international economy and the legitimacy of the Syrian government.
Israel advised for sanctions not to be lifted a month earlier
US President Donald Trump has chosen to reject Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s request to keep sanctions on Syria, Israeli media said on Wednesday.
Citing an Israeli official, The Times of Israel news portal said Netanyahu visited Washington last month and asked Trump not to lift the US sanctions on Syria.
The official asserted that the Israeli request stemmed from worries about potential cross-border attacks from Syria.
Trump, however, said on Tuesday in an investment forum in Riyadh at the beginning of his Gulf tour: “I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness.
“It’s their time to shine. We’re taking them all off.
“Good luck, Syria; show us something very special.”
Trump said he made the decision after discussions with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, whose governments have both strongly urged the lifting of US sanctions on Syria.
In response to the announcement of the removal of sanctions, U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said: “It was important for us to see relief on sanctions on Syria to help the reconstruction of Syria, to help the Syrian people recover from more than a decade of conflict, a decade of under investment.”
The Syrian Foreign Ministry has welcomed the announcement by President Trump.
