(Washington) Donald Trump received Ahmad al-Chareh on Monday, a first for a Syrian head of state and a consecration for the former jihadist, whose country will join the international coalition against the Islamic State (IS) group.
“I like him,” the American president reacted after the meeting, which took place away from the cameras, adding: “We will do everything we can to make Syria successful. »
“He has a brutal past, and I think, frankly, without a brutal past, you don’t have a chance,” Donald Trump said again.
He had previously expressed sympathy for the interim president, whose Islamist coalition toppled longtime leader Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, during their first-ever meeting in May in the Gulf.
As widely expected, this visit was an opportunity to announce Syria’s entry into the international anti-jihadist coalition led by the United States, targeting IS.
“Syria will thus become the 90e member of the coalition against Daesh,” said a US official who requested anonymity, using the Arabic acronym for IS. According to him, Damascus will now “partner with the United States to eliminate the last centers of Daesh and put an end to the influx of foreign fighters”.
In an interview with Fox News, the Syrian president had shortly before assured that this subject still had to be discussed.
Historically, Ahmad al-Chareh’s visit, however, remained relatively discreet: he passed through a side entrance, without the protocol usually reserved for foreign heads of state and government, whom the American president almost always comes to welcome on the steps.
Journalists were also not invited to the Oval Office in the presence of the two leaders.
PHOTO JACQUELYN MARTIN, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Ahmad al-Chareh as he leaves the White House.
After nearly two hours at the White House, Ahmad al-Chareh greeted cheering supporters.
“Observe developments”
The State Department also announced a new pause on US Caesar Act sanctions, pending Congress possibly lifting them for good.
This is a 180-day break from this law adopted in 2019 which imposed drastic American sanctions against the government of Bashar al-Assad, banning the country from the international banking system and financial transactions in dollars. She had already been suspended in May.
The United States also authorized Syria to resume the activities of its embassy in Washington, said the same official who requested anonymity.
The United States plans to establish a military base near Damascus, “to coordinate humanitarian aid and observe developments between Syria and Israel,” according to a diplomatic source in Syria.
On Friday, Washington had already removed the Syrian leader from the terrorist blacklist.
SYRIAN PRESIDENCY PRESS OFFICE PHOTO, PROVIDED BY ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Donald Trump meets with Syrian President Ahmad al-Chareh, first from left, at the White House on Monday, Nov. 10, 2025.
Since 2017 and until last December, the FBI offered a $10 million reward for information leading to the arrest of the leader of the former local branch of Al-Qaeda, the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group.
On Thursday, the UN Security Council also lifted sanctions against Ahmad al-Chareh, at the initiative of the United States.
“Very important”
As soon as he took power, the Syrian leader broke with his past, increasing overtures towards the West and the states of the region, including Israel with which his country is theoretically at war.
However, he also promised to “redefine” his country’s relationship with the Russia of Vladimir Putin, a key ally of Bashar al-Assad, whom he met in Moscow less than a month ago.
“Trump is bringing Chareh to the White House to say that he is no longer a terrorist (…) but a pragmatic and, above all, flexible leader who, under American and Saudi leadership, will make Syria a strategic regional pillar,” explains analyst Nick Heras.
“Having a stable and prosperous Syria is very important for all countries in the region,” Donald Trump said on his Truth Social network.
In May, Donald Trump pressed his Syrian counterpart to rejoin the Abraham Accords, which saw several Arab countries recognize Israel in 2020. On Fox News, Ahmad al-Chareh said he would not immediately enter into direct negotiations with Israel.
