Rubio stresses US desire to ‘give Syria a chance at greatness’ before meeting FM

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday “reaffirmed the United States’ desire to give Syria a chance at greatness,” before meeting his Syrian counterpart, Asaad al-Shaibani, in Turkey.

US President Donald Trump shocked the world this week when he announced, during his trip to Saudi Arabia, that he would suspend all sanctions against Syria. He said he made the move at the urging of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Turkey’s president.

Trump became the first US president to meet their Syrian counterpart since Bill Clinton and then-Syrian president Hafez al-Assad met in 2000.

The Trump administration has been hesitant to engage the new Syrian government, headed by Ahmed al-Sharaa, a US-designated terrorist who had a $10 million bounty on his head until late last year. But in another surprise move, Trump agreed to meet with Sharaa in Riyadh this week and told reporters that he has “a real shot at holding it together.” Trump called him “a young, attractive guy, with a very strong past.”

Al-Sharaa was held by US forces in Iraq for several years after he fought alongside al-Qaeda affiliates in the country.

The Syrian foreign ministry said that Rubio and Syria’s foreign minister met in Turkey on Thursday, alongside Ankara’s top diplomat, to discuss the details of lifting US sanctions on Syria, improving ties between Washington and Damascus, and explore ways to build a strategic relationship.

Rubio had earlier met with the foreign ministers of France, Germany, Italy and the UK on the sidelines of the NATO Informal Foreign Ministers Meeting in Turkey.

“Secretary Rubio briefed the ministers on President Trump’s efforts to halt the senseless bloodshed in Ukraine and emphasized that European leadership is critical for getting Russia and Ukraine to negotiate in good faith for a swift and durable peace settlement,” the State Department said.

He also stressed that US defense companies were “integral” to the transatlantic industrial base and “should not be sidelined in Europe’s rearmament efforts.”

The Trump administration has been calling on European countries to step up their investment in their respective defense sectors across the continent, particularly regarding support for NATO.

The ministers also spoke about the need to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and countering China’s influence.