Trump claims Syria sanctions were removed at Netanyahu’s request; PM hails US talks with Damascus

WASHINGTON — Asked whether he is comfortable with the quick warming of US ties with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s government, given Israel’s more cautious public approach, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the weakening of Iran and its proxies in the region presents new opportunities “for stability, for security, and eventually for peace.”

Netanyahu hails US President Donald Trump for opening “up a channel” with the new government in Damascus.

He declines to reveal whether Israel is engaged in direct talks with Syria. Only indirect channels have been publicly confirmed to date.

Trump reiterates that he decided to lift US sanctions against Syria at the request of many countries, “including Bibi.”

Reports to date have all insisted that Netanyahu was caught off guard by Trump’s decision to lift Syria sanctions. Israel had been taking a much harder stance on Syria, with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar and Defense Minister Israel Katz branding Sharaa a “terrorist in a suit” before abandoning the rhetoric in recent weeks as the US policy on Syria continued to warm.

Trump says he was impressed by Sharaa during their May meeting and lifted US sanctions in order to “give him a chance.”

The US president says he hopes to do the same for Iran “at the right time.”

“I’d like to see Iran build itself back up in a peaceful manner, and not going around saying ‘Death to America, Death to the USA, Death to Israel,’ as they were doing,” Trump says. “They were the bully of the Middle East, and now they’re not the bully anymore.”

Called on to speak by the president, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee hails Trump for his Syria policy.

“He reached out to the new Syrian government, knowing they needed a partner, and knowing that they could pick the wrong partner,” Huckabee says.

“What the president did — which took us all off guard… has set up something that is absolutely historic,” he says.