Syrian president arrives in US on historic visit

According to the Syrian state news agency, Mr. Ahmed al-Sharaa, the leader of the force that overthrew the government of President Bashar al-Assad late last year, is expected to meet US President Donald Trump on November 10 (local time).

This is the first official visit by a Syrian president to the US since the Middle Eastern country gained independence in 1946. Previously, the two leaders had their first meeting in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) during Mr. Trump's regional tour in May.

This visit took place right after the US State Department decided on November 7 to remove Mr. Sharaa from the global terrorist list. US State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said that this decision was made to "recognize the progress" of the Syrian leadership after Mr. Bashar al-Assad left power.

Mr. Pigott affirmed that Mr. Sharaa's administration has met Washington's requests, including cooperating in the search for missing Americans and efforts to eliminate any remaining chemical weapons.

The US decision will promote "regional security and stability and an inclusive political process that is Syrian-owned and -led," the spokesman added.

The move follows a series of diplomatic moves. On November 6, Washington led a vote at the UN Security Council to lift sanctions against Mr Sharaa. In July, his group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which had links to Al-Qaeda, was also removed from the US list of terrorist organizations.

Mr. Sharaa himself was listed as a terrorist by the United States in 2013 but announced his disassociation from Al-Qaeda in 2016.

Mr Sharaa's trip to Washington follows his landmark visit to the United Nations in New York in September. It was his first visit to the US and the first time a Syrian president addressed the UN General Assembly in decades.

Observers say one of Mr Sharaa's main goals during his visit is to seek international funding to rebuild the country after 13 years of conflict. In October, the World Bank (WB) gave its "most conservative estimate" of the cost of rebuilding Syria at $216 billion.

On the US side, special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack said earlier this month that Mr. Sharaa "hopes" to sign an agreement for Syria to join the US-led international coalition against the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS).

In addition, a diplomatic source in Syria revealed to AFP that the US plans to establish a military base near Damascus to "coordinate humanitarian aid and monitor developments between Syria and Israel".