President Donald Trump met with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Wednesday, marking the first time that top leaders from the two countries have met in more than two decades.
During the meeting, Trump pressed al-Sharaa to help the United States combat ISIS, remove all foreign terrorists from Syria, and normalize relations with Israel, according to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. Trump and al-Sharaa, who overthrew former Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad in December, reportedly spoke for about 33 minutes.
“He’s got a real shot at holding it together,” Trump said of al-Sharaa. “I spoke with [Turkish] President Erdogan, who is very friendly with him. He feels he’s got a shot of doing a good job. It’s a torn-up country.”
Trump also called al-Sharaa a “young, attractive guy. Tough guy. Strong past. Very strong past. Fighter.”
The meeting came after Trump announced on Tuesday that he was dropping sanctions on Syria “in order to give them a chance at greatness.”
“In Syria, which has seen so much misery and death, there is a new government that will hopefully succeed in stabilizing the country and keeping peace. That’s what we want to see,” Trump said during a speech in Saudi Arabia.
Leavitt said that Trump was invited to meet with al-Sharaa by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan joined the meeting by phone. It was the first meeting between an American and Syrian president in 25 years.
“President Erdogan praised President Trump for lifting sanctions on Syria and committed to working alongside Saudi Arabia to encourage peace and prosperity in Syria,” Leavitt posted on X. “The Crown Prince also commended President Trump for his decision to lift the sanctions, calling it courageous. President Trump thanked President Erdogan and the Crown Prince for their friendship, and told President Al-Sharaa that he has a tremendous opportunity to do something historic in his country. President Trump encouraged President Al-Sharaa to do a great job for the Syrian people.”
Leavitt said Trump “urged” al-Sharaa to “sign onto the Abraham Accords with Israel” and “assume responsibility for ISIS detention centers in Northeast Syria.”
The two also discussed their “shared interests” of countering terrorism and eliminating chemical weapons, according to Leavitt. Al-Sharaa, who has portrayed himself as a moderate, has previously been tied to various terrorist groups like Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and Al-Qaeda.
“President Al-Sharaa affirmed his commitment to the 1974 disengagement with Israel. President Al-Sharaa concluded with his hope that Syria would serve as a critical link in facilitating trade between east and west, and invited American companies to invest in Syrian oil and gas,” Leavitt said.
The Syrian Foreign Ministry said during the meeting that Trump “affirmed that the administration in Washington is committed to playing a positive and constructive role during this sensitive period.”
Shortly after the meeting with al-Sharaa, Trump left for Qatar for the second stop of his Middle East trip.
