President Trump met Wednesday with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa and urged him to sign a peace deal with Israel, the White House said in a statement. Why it matters: The extraordinary meeting in Riyadh between Trump and al-Sharaa — who remains on the U.

President Trump met with Syria's interim President on Wednesday, a day after lifting sanctions and marking a major policy shift towards peace and rebuilding relations.

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

During the second day of Trump's Middle East trip, he announced a major deal between Boeing and Qatar Airways and signed an agreement with Qatar; he also met with Syria's interim president.

Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa has privately expressed openness to joining the Abraham Accords and normalizing relations with Israel in a move that would dramatically shake up the Middle East, according to two congressmen who met with him last month.

When President Donald Trump announced the lifting of US sanctions on Syria during his trip to the Middle East this week, it marked a major policy shift that could reshape the region and triggered a scramble across the US government to implement the decision,