WASHINGTON – Following a meeting at the White House, President Donald Trump announced Monday that Syria will join the international coalition to defeat the Islamic State (IS) group. The move accompanies a notable shift in U.S. policy toward Syria,including lifting economic restrictions and providing “compliance clarity for investors.”
As part of the policy change, the administration is temporarily suspending the Caesar Act for 180 days, legislation enacted in 2019 that sanctioned the former Syrian government.
“We want to see Syria become a country that’s very successful,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “And I think this leader can do it. I really do.”
The United States will also allow Syria to re-open its embassy in Washington,after diplomatic relations were suspended in 2012.This meeting marks the third between Trump and Syrian interim President Abu Mohammad al-Sharaa, following prior engagements in May during the Gulf Cooperation Council and in September at the UN General Assembly.
Al-Sharaa’s ascent to the presidency and subsequent engagement with the U.S. represents a dramatic conversion. He previously led a branch of Al-Qaeda and, until earlier this year, headed Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, a group the U.S. designated as a terrorist institution with a $10 million bounty on al-Sharaa’s head. The Treasury Department removed al-Sharaa from its “specially designated global terrorist list” last week.
As becoming interim president, al-Sharaa has sought to rebrand his image as he attempts to rebuild Syria after 13 years of war. “He has had a rough past,” Trump acknowledged, “And I think, frankly, if you didn’t have a rough past, you wouldn’t have a chance.”
Al-Sharaa stated in an interview that discussions with Trump focused on Syria’s future as a ”geopolitical” and economic partner of Washington, not his past.
The administration previously lifted sanctions against Syria in June through an executive order, citing support for the country’s “path to stability and peace.” The administration indicated it would monitor the new Syrian government’s actions, including steps toward normalizing ties with Israel and addressing foreign terrorists and militant groups within the country. Al-Sharaa has pledged to address human rights violations committed by members of his security forces.
