Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa met with US President Donald Trump.
The meeting took place on the sidelines of the Gulf Cooperation Council summit in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Wednesday. Trump announced the lifting of sanctions on Syria on Tuesday.
This is the first time since 2000 that the top leaders of the two countries have met. Trump’s office had previously announced that they would only say ‘hello’ to each other.
Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency reported that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was present during the meeting between Donald Trump and al-Sharaa. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan joined the meeting via online video link.
The United States has long imposed major sanctions on Syria, making it difficult to get aid from the country to the country.
People in Damascus, Syria, took to the streets to celebrate after Trump announced the lifting of sanctions on Tuesday.
Sharaa officially took charge of Syria in December after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad government. However, last year, the United States announced a $10 million reward for the capture of Ahmed al-Sharaa, which the United States withdrew after talks with the new Syrian administration in December last year.
Source: BBC.