Trump To Meet Syrian Leader Ahmad al-Sharaa In Saudi Arabia, Hints At Turkey Detour

<p>US President Donald Trump is on his three-nation visit to the Middle East this week. He announced a meeting in Saudi Arabia with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, the onetime insurgent who last year led the overthrow of former leader Bashar Assad, reports news agency AP.</p>
<p>&ldquo;The President agreed to say hello to the Syrian President while in Saudi Arabia tomorrow,&rdquo; the White House said.</p>
<p>Trump has been weighing how to handle al-Sharaa ever since he took power in December.</p>
<p>As he prepared to leave Washington, the US president said that he is weighing removing the sanctions on the Syrian government.</p>
<p>&ldquo;We may want to take them off of Syria, because we want to give them a fresh start,&rdquo; said Trump, adding that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has urged him to do so.</p>
<p>According to the news agency, Trump received a warm welcome in Saudi Arabia from Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as he stepped off his Air Force One in the Saudi capital. &ldquo;I really believe we like each other a lot,&rdquo; Trump said later. The pair signed a host of economic and bilateral cooperation agreements.</p>
<p>The report mentions that the presidents Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy are expected to meet in Istanbul, Turkey, on Thursday to discuss ending Russia&rsquo;s war on Ukraine. Trump suggested that he could make a detour to Turkey if he thinks that his presence might be helpful.</p>
<p>According to news agency AP, Qatar has planned to gift Trump a plane. On Monday, the US president said that he is ready to accept a luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet as a gift from the ruling family of Qatar, and U.S. officials say it could be converted into a potential presidential aircraft.</p>