WASHINGTON DC - US President Donald Trump told Rudaw on Tuesday that he is confident that Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa can do a “good job” for the war-torn country.
“I think Syria has come a long way. The new leader of Syria was here, as you know, three weeks ago… Not an easy job. It is centuries of problems. But I think he's going to do a good job. I have a lot of confidence in him,” he said when Rudaw asked him about the growing demands of Syria’s minority groups for autonomy and greater rights.
Sharaa on Monday received Trump’s Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack in Damascus to discuss “the latest developments in the region and issues of common interest.” The meeting coincided with comments from Trump, who wrote on his Truth Social platform that Washington is “very satisfied with the results displayed, through hard work and determination, in the country of Syria.”
“We are doing everything within our power to make sure the Government of Syria continues to do what was intended… to build a true and prosperous country,” Trump said, adding that his rollback of “very strong and biting sanctions” had “helped them greatly.”
Syria officially joined the US-led coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS) in November, following a landmark meeting between Trump and Sharaa at the White House - the first such encounter for a Syrian president in more than eight decades.
Sharaa’s now-dissolved Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) with the help of other rebel groups toppled Syria’s long-time dictator Bashar al-Assar a year ago. He was later declared the interim president of the country and promised greater rights to Syrians. However, massacres against minority groups like the Druze and Alawites have sent alarms across the country, with Kurds fearing that they could be next.
