Quick Hit:

President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced the U.S. would lift sanctions on Syria, signaling a major shift in American foreign policy. The declaration came during a speech in Saudi Arabia, shortly before a historic meeting with Syria’s new president, Ahmad al-Sharaa.

Key Details:

• Trump called the sanctions “brutal and crippling” but said it was time to “give Syria a chance at greatness.”

• The announcement came just before Trump met with al-Sharaa in Riyadh, with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman hosting and Turkish President Erdogan joining the meeting by phone.

• Al-Sharaa thanked Trump for the sanctions relief and called for U.S. investment, saying Syria shares Washington’s goals of fighting terrorism and removing chemical weapons.

Diving Deeper:

In a major foreign policy shift, President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced that the United States would lift its long-standing sanctions on Syria. The decision was revealed during remarks in Saudi Arabia, where Trump kicked off the first international tour of his second term.

“In Syria, which has seen so much misery and death, there is a new government that we must all hope will succeed in stabilizing the country and keeping peace,” Trump said. “I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness.”

The announcement came ahead of a high-profile meeting with Syria’s new president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, who replaced Bashar al-Assad after leading a military campaign to oust him last year. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman hosted the meeting in Riyadh, with Turkish President Recep Erdogan joining via phone. According to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, both Erdogan and the Crown Prince praised Trump’s decision, calling it a courageous step toward regional stability.

Leavitt said Trump “thanked President Erdogan and the Crown Prince for their friendship, and told President Al-Sharaa that he has a tremendous opportunity to do something historic in his country.”

During the meeting, Trump encouraged al-Sharaa to pursue regional peace by signing onto the Abraham Accords, ejecting foreign terrorist groups from Syria, deporting Palestinian militants, assisting U.S. efforts to prevent the resurgence of ISIS, and taking full responsibility for ISIS detention centers in northeast Syria.

Al-Sharaa responded by thanking the three leaders for arranging the meeting and recognizing the “significant opportunity” created by the Iranian drawdown in Syria. He reaffirmed his commitment to the 1974 disengagement agreement with Israel and emphasized Syria’s shared interests with the U.S. in fighting terrorism and eliminating chemical weapons. He also expressed hope that Syria would become a major transit hub for trade between East and West, inviting American companies to invest in Syrian oil and gas development.

Trump described the sanctions, first imposed during Assad’s rule, as “important at the time” but no longer necessary in light of the new leadership. Syria had been cut off from the global financial system for years, with U.S. laws barring financial transactions, oil and gas trade, and foreign investment in Syrian entities.