RIYADH: President Donald Trump told Gulf leaders on Wednesday that he urgently wants “to make a deal” with Iran to wind down its nuclear program but that Tehran must end its support of proxy groups throughout the region as part of any potential agreement.
Iran “must stop sponsoring terror, halt its bloody proxy wars, and permanently and verifiably cease pursuit of nuclear weapons,” Trump said in remarks at a meeting of leaders from the Gulf Cooperation Council hosted by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the Saudi capital. “They cannot have a nuclear weapon.”
The US and Iran have engaged in four rounds of talks since early last month focused on Iran’s nuclear program. Trump has repeatedly said he believes brokering a deal is possible, but that the window is closing.
The president’s strongly worded push on Iran to cease support of Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the Houthis in Yemen come as its proxy network has faced significant setbacks in the 19 months since Hamas launched its Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel.
In Iran, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called Trump’s remarks “deceitful” but did not directly address the US leader’s call on Iran to cease support of proxy groups.
Trump added that he believed the moment was ripe “for a future free from the grip of Hezbollah terrorists.” Hezbollah is severely weakened after its war last year with Israel in which much of its top leadership was killed, and after losing a key ally with the fall of former Syrian President Bashar Assad, a conduit for Iran to send arms.
Trump’s comments on Iran came after he met Wednesday with Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa, a face-to-face engagement with the onetime insurgent leader who spent years imprisoned by US forces after being captured in Iraq.
Trump agreed to meet Al-Sharaa at the end of his stay in Saudi Arabia. He headed next to Qatar, where he will be honored with a state visit. His Middle East tour also will take him to the United Arab Emirates.
Al-Sharaa was named president of Syria in January, a month after a stunning offensive by insurgent groups led by Al-Sharaa’s Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, or HTS, stormed Damascus and ended the 54-year rule of the Assad family.
Trump said he decided to meet with Al-Sharaa after being encouraged to do so by Prince Mohammed and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The president also pledged to lift yearslong sanctions on Syria.
“The sanctions were really crippling and very powerful,” Trump said. “It’s not going to be easy anyway, so it gives them a good, strong chance” to rebuild the country, he added.
Prince Mohammed joined Trump and Al-Sharaa for the meeting, which lasted about 33 minutes. Erdogan also took part in the talks via video conference.
The prince said Trump’s decision to engage with Al-Sharaa and lift the sanctions will “alleviate the suffering of the Syrian people” and spur a “new chapter” for the nation.
Formerly known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed Al-Golani, Al-Sharaa joined the ranks of Al-Qaeda insurgents battling US forces in Iraq after the US-led invasion. He still faces a warrant for his arrest on terrorism charges in Iraq. The US once offered $10 million for information about his whereabouts because of his links to Al-Qaeda.
Al-Sharaa came back to his home country of Syria after the conflict began in 2011 and led Al-Qaeda’s branch that used to be known as the Nusra Front. He later changed the name of his group to Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham and cut links with Al-Qaeda.
The sanctions go back to the rule of Assad, who was ousted in December, and were intended to inflict major pain on his economy.
Both the Biden and Trump administrations left the sanctions in place after Assad’s fall as they sought to take the measure of Al-Shara.
After meeting with members of the GCC — which includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates — Trump was heading to Qatar, the second stop in his Mideast tour.
Qatar also has served as a key mediator, particularly with the militant group Hamas as the international community pursues a ceasefire for the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. Qatar also served as host of the negotiations between the United States and the Taliban that led to America’s 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Qatar is home to Al-Udeid Air Base, a sprawling facility that hosts the forward headquarters of the US military’s Central Command.
