Ahmed Alshara, Syria’s interim president, held a summit with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on the 10th (local time). It was the fi...
Alshara’s first U.S. visit since the nation’s founding a ‘symbolic moment’… summit held behind closed doors U.S. postpones enforcement of the tough ‘Caesar Act’… Syria to join the international coalition to eliminate IS Syrian president’s first visit to the White House U.
S. President Donald Trump speaks with Syrian President Ahmed Alshara at the White House in Washington on the 10th . AP Yonhap News Ahmed Alshara, Syria’s interim president, held a summit with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on the 10th . It was the first time since Syria’s founding in 1946 that a Syrian leader has visited the White House. Foreign media assessed the meeting as a symbolic moment that successfully capped Alshara’s transformation from a jihadist into a global statesman. Alshara arrived at the White House at 11:37 a.m. and met with President Trump for nearly two hours. President Trump usually opened his meetings with foreign leaders to the press, but this one was held privately. It appears to have taken into account Alshara’s history of activity with al-Qaeda, the group behind the 9·11 attacks, since 2003. After the meeting, President Trump said of Alshara, “He is a very strong leader. I like him,” and added, “He has had a very hard past. Without a hard past, you cannot have opportunities.” He also said, “We will do our best for Syria’s success,” emphasizing, “Syria is part of the Middle East. Peace has now come to the Middle East.” Alshara’s goal in this summit was the complete lifting of U.S. sanctions on Syria. Responding to this, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and other agencies announced that enforcement of the strong ‘Caesar Civilian Protection Act’ against Syria would be postponed for an additional 180 days. The Caesar Act was enacted in 2019 to hold the Bashar al-Assad dictatorship accountable for massacres of civilians. It includes within its scope even individuals and institutions in third countries that conduct transactions with Syria. The United States announced a 180-day suspension of enforcement last May and has postponed it once more this time. However, transactions related to the Russia·Iran governments were excluded from the suspension. Full repeal of the Caesar Act would require a vote in the U.S. Congress. If sanctions are eased, Syria can resume raising funds and importing goods needed to rebuild a country devastated by 13 years of civil war. After the meeting, Alshara said in an interview with the Washington Post, “It is clear that President Trump supports Syria’s stability, territorial integrity, and the complete lifting of sanctions on Syria.” The biggest reason President Trump supports Syria lies in a reordering of the Middle East. He aims to expand the Abraham Accords to Syria in order to isolate Iran, Syria’s long-time ally. Regarding the Abraham Accords, Alshara said in an interview with Fox News, “We will not start direct negotiations with Israel right away,” while adding, “The U.S. administration can help reach this kind of negotiation.” Syria has also decided to cooperate with the international coalition to eliminate the Islamic State . The international coalition, launched in 2014 under U.S. leadership, includes 89 countries, and Syria has become the 90th participant. The summit drew attention because Alshara is from al-Qaeda, had once been detained in a U.S. military facility in Iraq, and the United States had even offered a $10 million bounty on him . The United States removed Alshara from its terrorist sanctions list just two days before he entered the country, on the 8th. Alshara was active in al-Qaeda’s Iraq branch from 2003~2006, and after the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, he founded the al-Qaeda-linked ‘Nusra Front’ in 2012. He broke with al-Qaeda in 2016, formed the armed group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham by uniting Syrian rebel organizations, and in December last year ousted former President al-Assad. Having risen to lead Syria’s transitional government, President Alshara has showcased his political profile through vigorous diplomacy spanning the West, Arab states, and Russia. In September, he became the first Syrian president to address the UN General Assembly.
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