Trump signals he’ll meet Syrian leader, who may reportedly raise normalization with Israel

13 May 2025, 5:09 pm Edit

Left to right: US President Donald Trump takes questions outside the West Wing of White House in Washington, DC, on May 8, 2025. (Jim WATSON / AFP); Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa listens during a joint press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron after a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, May 7, 2025. (Stephanie Lecocq/Pool via AP)

US President Donald Trump appears to confirm that he will meet with interim Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa during his swing through Saudi Arabia.

Leaving the King Abdul Aziz International Conference Center, Trump stops for a moment before getting into his limousine to answer a shouted question from a reporter, who asks if he is meeting the Syrian president.

Nodding, Trump says, “I think so,” before climbing in the vehicle.

According to the London Times, citing unnamed security sources, Sharaa may use the meeting to offer talks on normalizing relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords.

Syrian activists and Gulf Arab states have been trying to arrange a landmark meeting between the two leaders this week on the sidelines of Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

Sharaa spoke with Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Sunday, according to the Syrian presidency.