Earlier in May, many of us were shocked to see the former Jihadist, President Ahmed al-Sharaa of Syria and US President Donald Trump engage positively with one another, during Trump’s visit to the Gulf nations.
The US Treasury declared on May 23rd that a variety of sanctions on Syria will be eased with immediate effect. This followed Trump’s announcement on May 13th that his country will be withdrawing sanctions on Syria.
On May 14th, Trump had his meeting with al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia. It was a pivotal moment in US-Syria relations, as it was the first top-level meeting between the two nations since former Syrian President Hafez al-Assad met with US President Bill Clinton 25 years ago in Geneva.
Trump’s efforts to rebuild US-Syria relations was met with skepticism. International security director at the Asia Pacific Foundation, Sajjan Gohel, said: “We’re living in a very unusual world where suddenly people who professed hatred of the West and in particular the United States are now being accepted as potential allies and partners.”
On X, executive director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Jonathan Schanzer, said that the removal of US sanctions on Syria has happened too soon and that “not enough” is “known.” Schanzer also said: “If things go badly, today paved the way for a Muslim Brotherhood-Sunni jihad state in the heart of the Levant.”
No doubt, al-Sharaa has been something of a chameleon, when one considers the political messaging of his attire. He was once clad in military fatigues, but later toned this down to basic military attire. Now he wears western business suits, and appears to have shedded his Jihadi skin. The idea of the US being in talks with leaders once considered by the its government to be terrorists or linked with terrorists is not unheard of. The country has negotiated with Yasser Arafat, who was the head of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation as well as Gerry Adams, the leader of Sinn Fein.
Trump seemed to be unfazed by his Syrian counterpart’s Jihadi past or the fact that in 2013, he was designated as a terrorist by the US. He described him as young, attractive and tough with a “strong past.” But his admiration for the leader seems disjointed when you consider his earlier sentiment. In December last year, he said in an X post: “Syria is a mess, but is not our friend, & THE UNITED STATES SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT. LET IT PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED !”
But Trump’s newfound positive reaction towards al-Sharaa, might just be a product of his ties with Turkey. On his way to Qatar, Trump had said: “I spoke with President Erdogan who I’m very friendly with. He feels he’s [al-Sharaa] got a shot of doing a good job.” Could Trump be following orders from his Turkish counterpart or has he genuinely warmed up to the Syrian leader? Perhaps, it is a bit of both, but his interest in Syria also serves the purpose of peacekeeping.
The US president did stress that the removal of sanctions is a strategy to prompt Syria to repair its ties with Israel. But according to Israeli media, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on the US President to maintain sanctions on Syria. The response from Netanyahu could ultimately lead to friction between the US ally of Israel and Trump, which leaves room for US-Syria ties to grow stronger.
Bu there is enormous potential for ties to be sustained, due to the implications of the sanctions relief. The removal of sanctions could enhance the movement of goods, medical provisions and technology in Syria. It could also generate more jobs for Syrians, which means the country’s economy will get its much-needed boost.
But it appears that while Trump is keen to give Syria a chance to prosper, he equally expects the leader to crack down on hardliners. Trump mentioned that the Syrian leader needs to expel foreign militants as well as members of extremist Palestinian groups. He also said that al-Sharaa needs to make the effort to tackle ISIS.
But bilateral influences do of course come into play. Trump did ascribe his shift in attitude to Syria not just to Turkey’s President Recep Erdogan but also Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman. What’s more, Saudi Arabia and Turkey were among the nations that had called on the US to ease sanctions on Syria in a bid to help reconstruction go ahead following the end of the Syrian civil war in December 2024.
According to experts, some officials from the Trump administration believe al-Sharaa is a president that can stabilise Syria. Reportedly, they are willing to take a chance on the Syrian leader to prevent civil war and a dictatorship entering power.
But allegedly, some members of the US are considering a very different plan. The king of Jordan, Abdullah II, had told the US to not assassinate al-Sharaa before the Syrian and US leaders were to meet, according to Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen.
Shaheen said: “I have been concerned by some rumours that I have heard in…some foreign policy circles of the administration that one option that’s been suggested is assassinating the new leader of the Syrian government, Ahmed al-Sharaa.” This tells us that while Trump has a positive perception of al-Sharaa, his colleagues could have strong reservations about his political intent.
Shaheen said that the Jordanian king was aware of the alleged talks to assassinate al-Sharaa and warned that it was the wrong way forward. The king said that if Syria was to have a new leader a civil war would occur.
In response to the alleged assasination suggestion, Trump’s nominee for the Near East undersecretary of state, Joel Rayburn, said: “I’m not familiar with efforts like that, but that’s clearly not in line with the president’s intention…or his description of Sharaa in the past couple of days.” Indeed, Trump might be a fan of al-Sharaa, but how members of the administration regard the ex-Jihadist is not at all certain.
So will Trump maintain his relations with Syria or could the alleged opposition from his administration influence his next moves. Who knows? There has been anxiety about where US-Syria ties could lead, when considering al-Sharaa’s militant past.
Trump has drastically changed his tune on Syria which makes you question how secure his judgment is. The American leader is also acting in the interests of Turkey and Saudi Arabia, which makes his efforts to secure ties with Syria seem like a diplomatic move to satisfy allies, rather than an effort to attain a new ally.
Trump also wants al-Sharaa to tackle militancy and extremism. This may prove to be challenging for the overstretched Syrian government, which already faces the tough task of rebuilding Syria’s economy and reconstructing its infrastructure. Then there are the rumours about the alleged assasination talks, which tells us there could be an internal conflict in the administration. So al-Sharaa may have not one over the entire administration, but he seems to have one over its key figure. Strong relations with a president, outweigh any negative relationship with his deputies.
The New Arab, Al Jazeera, NBC, Reuters, X, The Guardian, Chatham House, BBC, Council on Foreign Relations, Middle East Eye
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