WASHINGTON: Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa landed in Washington for a landmark official visit, a day after the United States removed his name from its terrorism blacklist, according to Syria’s state news agency.
Sharaa, whose rebel movement toppled former ruler Bashar al-Assad late last year, is scheduled to meet US President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday. It will be the first official visit to the US by a Syrian head of state since the country’s independence in 1946.
The two leaders last met in Riyadh during Trump’s Middle East tour in May.
According to US envoy to Syria Tom Barrack, Washington hopes the visit will culminate in Syria joining the US-led international coalition against the Islamic State (IS).
Diplomatic sources in Damascus say the United States is considering setting up a military coordination base near the Syrian capital to oversee humanitarian operations and monitor the tense frontier with Israel.
The State Department’s move to lift sanctions on Sharaa was anticipated, with officials citing “substantial progress” by the new Syrian leadership in locating missing American citizens and dismantling remaining chemical stockpiles.
“These steps recognize Syria’s transition after the end of Bashar al-Assad’s decades of authoritarian rule,” spokesman Tommy Pigott said, adding that Washington’s policy aimed to foster “a stable, inclusive, and Syrian-led political process.”
From Rebel to Reformer
Sharaa’s trip to Washington follows his September debut at the United Nations General Assembly, where he became the first Syrian president in decades to address the world body. Days later, the UN Security Council, led by the US, voted to lift long-standing sanctions on Damascus.
Once linked to Al-Qaeda through his former group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS)—which the US delisted as a terrorist organization in July—Sharaa has since worked to rebrand himself as a pragmatic reformer.
“His transformation from militant commander to statesman has been remarkable,” said Michael Hanna, director of the International Crisis Group’s US Program. “This White House visit is a powerful symbol of Washington’s endorsement of Syria’s new direction.”
Syria’s interim government faces enormous reconstruction challenges after 13 years of civil war, with the World Bank estimating rebuilding costs at $216 billion as of October.
During his visit, President Sharaa is expected to seek international financial support and strengthen ties with Washington — a relationship once unimaginable under the previous regime.
