Trump to host Syria’s al-Sharaa for talks at White House in November

Al-Sharaa’s trip, planned for November 10, volition beryllium first-ever sojourn by a Syrian president to the White House.

United States President Donald Trump is to big Syria’s interim person for talks this period successful what would people the archetypal sojourn by a Syrian president to the US capital.

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said successful a code connected Sunday that the sojourn volition assistance unfastened a “new chapter” successful relations betwixt Damascus and Washington.

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“President Ahmed al-Sharaa volition beryllium astatine the White House astatine the commencement of November,” al-Shaibani said successful the code successful Bahrain. “Of course, this is simply a historical visit. It is the archetypal sojourn by a Syrian president to the White House successful much than 80 years.

“There volition beryllium galore issues connected the table, starting with the lifting of sanctions and opening of a caller section betwixt the United States and Syria. We privation to found a precise beardown concern betwixt the 2 countries.”

Earlier, the US quality website Axios quoted Tom Barrack, the US envoy to Syria, arsenic saying al-Sharaa is expected to motion an statement to articulation an planetary US-led confederation against the ISIL (ISIS) radical during his visit.

Meeting with Trump

Al-Sharaa, who seized powerfulness from Bashar al-Assad successful December, has been seeking to re-establish Syria’s ties with satellite powers that had shunned Damascus during al-Assad’s rule.

He met Trump successful Saudi Arabia successful May successful what was the archetypal brushwood betwixt the 2 nations’ leaders successful 25 years.

The meeting, connected the sidelines of Trump’s get-together with the leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council, was seen arsenic a large crook of events for a Syria that is inactive adjusting to beingness aft the much than 50-year regularisation of the al-Assad family.

Al-Sharaa besides addressed the United Nations General Assembly successful New York successful September.

He erstwhile led Syria’s offshoot of al-Qaeda. A decennary ago, his anti-Assad radical broke distant from the web and aboriginal clashed with ISIL. Al-Sharaa besides erstwhile had a $10m US reward connected his head.

Syria’s president had joined fighters battling US forces successful Iraq earlier entering the Syrian war. He was adjacent imprisoned by US forces determination for respective years.

The US-led conjugation and its section partners drove ISIL from its past stronghold successful Syria successful 2019.

Al-Sharaa’s planned sojourn to Washington, DC, comes arsenic Trump is urging Middle East allies to prehend the infinitesimal to physique a durable bid successful the volatile portion aft Israel and Hamas past period began implementing a ceasefire and captives exchange. That statement aims to bring astir a imperishable extremity to Israel’s two-year warfare successful Gaza.

The fragile ceasefire continues to hold, but the concern remains precarious.

Syria and Israel are successful talks to scope an statement that Damascus hopes volition unafraid a halt to Israeli aerial strikes connected its territory and the withdrawal of Israeli troops who person pushed into confederate Syria.