Syria says Trump’s decision to lift sanctions is ‘turning point’
ISTANBUL
Syria said US President Donald Trump’s remarks on Tuesday in Saudi Arabia about lifting sanctions imposed on the country are a “pivotal turning point.”
“We welcome President Donald Trump’s recent comments about lifting the sanctions imposed on Syria in response to war crimes committed by the Assad regime,” Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani told the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).
He described it as “a pivotal turning point for the Syrian people as we move toward a future of stability, self-sufficiency, and genuine reconstruction after years of devastating war.”
“We view this announcement very positively and are ready to build a relationship with the US based on mutual respect, trust, and shared interests,” he added.
He said Trump “has the potential to secure a historic peace deal and a real victory for American interests in Syria,” and “he has already done more for the Syrian people than his predecessors, who allowed war criminals to cross red lines and commit massacres.”
Al-Shaibani declined to comment on a White House official’s statement that Trump had agreed to meet Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa on Wednesday during his visit to Saudi Arabia.
A White House official, who requested anonymity, said Tuesday that “the president agreed to say hello to the Syrian president while in Saudi Arabia tomorrow.”
Trump said during the 2025 Saudi-US Investment Forum in Riyadh that he would order the removal of “brutal and crippling” US sanctions on Syria to give that country “a chance at greatness.”
Trump arrived in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, kicking off a Gulf tour that will continue with visits to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates—his first major international trip of his second term besides a brief visit to Italy for Pope Francis’ funeral.
A new transitional administration was formed in Syria in January following the fall of the Assad regime.
Bashar al-Assad, who ruled Syria for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia in December, ending the Baath Party’s decades-long grip on power that began in 1963.
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