Trump meets Syrian president and urges him to establish ties with Israel

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (right) watches as U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with Syria's interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa in Riyadh on Wednesday. | BANDAR AL-JALOUD photo

by GRAM SLATTERY, PESHA MAGID AND ANDREW MILLS
May 14, 2025

RIYADH – U.S. President Donald Trump met with Syria's president in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday and urged him to normalize ties with longtime foe Israel, after a surprise U.S. announcement that it would lift all sanctions on the Islamist-led government.

Trump met Syria's Ahmed al-Sharaa, who once pledged allegiance to al-Qaida and swept to power at the head of a group that Washington has called a terrorist organization, before a summit between the United States and Gulf Arab countries.

Photos posted on Saudi state television showed them shaking hands in the presence of Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, also known as MbS.