Khaberni - Syrian President Ahmad Al-Shar` holds unprecedented talks with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday, following his removal from Washington's terrorism list.
Since President Al-Shar` took power, the new Syrian leadership has sought to sever ties with its past and present a more moderate image to ordinary Syrians and foreign powers.
Michael Hanna, the director of the United States program at the International Crisis Group, noted that Al-Shar`'s visit to the White House carries significant symbolism for the new leader of the country who is taking a new step in his remarkable transformation from a "hardline leader to a global statesman."
Al-Shar` first met Trump in Saudi Arabia during a regional tour that the American president was undertaking in the region last May.
Upon arriving in Washington, Al-Shar` met with the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva, to discuss potential aid for Syria after years of war, and representatives from Syrian organizations.
Earlier this month, the U.S. Special Envoy to Syria, Tom Barrack, announced that Al-Shar` might sign an agreement on Monday to join the international coalition led by Washington against the ISIS terrorist organization.
The coalition dealt a military defeat to ISIS in Syria in 2019 in cooperation with the Syrian Democratic Forces and is currently negotiating to merge with the Syrian army.
A diplomatic source in Syria reported that the United States intends to establish a military base near Damascus "to coordinate humanitarian aid and monitor developments between Syria and Israel."
The decision by the U.S. State Department on Friday to remove Al-Shar` from the blacklist was expected.
Al-Shar`'s visit to Washington follows his visit to the United Nations headquarters in New York last September, making him the first Syrian president in decades to address the United Nations General Assembly.
Last week, Washington led a United Nations Security Council vote to lift the sanctions imposed on him.
Syria, emerging from a devastating 13-year conflict, seeks to secure financing for reconstruction estimated by the World Bank to cost over $216 billion.
