Syrian President Ahmed al-Shalah met with President Donald Trump at the White House today, marking the first visit by a Syrian leader to the White House since Syria gained independence from France in 1946.
Shalah discreetly entered through a side door on Monday, spending about an hour and a half inside. When he left, he was met by a crowd of several hundred supporters, many waving Syrian flags. Neither the White House nor Shalah’s office provided immediate comments regarding the meeting, and details were still unclear at press time.
The visit carried significant implications, as Shalah, a former al-Qaeda official and wanted terrorist, aimed to persuade the West that he could oversee a transition to a peaceful and reliable democratic governance.
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast (R-Fla.) approached the Trump-Shalah discussions with a sense of hope. He had a meeting with Shalah the previous evening where they discussed the future of Syria and the need for peace.
Mast shared, “Last night, Syria’s new president, Ahmed al-Shalah, and I shared bread. We engaged in a long and serious discussion about building a future for the Syrian people, free from war and extremism.”
He mentioned, “He and I are ex-soldiers and were once enemies. I asked him directly, ‘Why aren’t we enemies anymore?’ His response was that he wants to move beyond his past, aim for noble pursuits for his people, and be a reliable ally to the U.S.”
Mast, a veteran who lost both legs while serving in Afghanistan, expressed confidence that Shalah would officially join the global coalition against ISIS following his discussions with Trump. This would signify a major shift for Shalah, who had worked with ISIS founder Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi during his al-Qaeda days.
Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.), who also met with Shalah, encouraged Congress to consider lifting sanctions and extending a vote of confidence to Syria’s interim president.
Wilson remarked, “A free, united, and prosperous Syria presents our best opportunity since the Cold War ended. We must give Syria a chance to succeed and fully abolish the Caesar Act.”
The Caesar Civil Protection Act of 2019 imposed strict sanctions on Bashar al-Assad’s regime for human rights abuses. Assad was overthrown in December 2024 by a coalition of rebels and jihadist groups led by Shalah. To support this transition, President Trump lifted many sanctions as part of a July presidential order.
Mast is among those in Congress working to lift the Caesar Act at the behest of the Israeli government, particularly to protect the Druze minority during recent conflicts involving Shalah’s security forces.
Recently, the Ministry of Finance announced a 180-day suspension of sanctions imposed under the Caesar Act, excluding certain transactions with the Russian and Iranian governments.
The Treasury Department indicated that lifting sanctions would fulfill President Trump’s promise to offer Syria a “chance for greatness.”
They mentioned that the new U.S. policy aims to encourage investment and cooperation for stabilizing Syria without enabling detrimental activities.
However, the Treasury’s waiver does not provide the complete and permanent sanctions relief that only Congress could grant. There are concerns within Shalah’s government that potential international investors might hesitate to engage in significant reconstruction efforts as long as the Caesar Act sanctions remain only temporarily suspended.
