"I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness," Trump announced in Riyadh on Tuesday. Syria has been designated a state sponsor of terrorism by the U.

President Donald Trump met with Syrian President Ahmad al-Shara in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, a day after announcing plans to lift U.S. sanctions on Syria, offering a significant boost to the country’s new leadership as it attempts to shore up international support after a nearly a decade and a half-long civil war which ended with the ouster of the country’s former leader Bashar al-Assad.

Among the deals was "the largest defense sales agreement in history -- nearly 142 billion dollars," the statement said.

President Donald Trump will meet with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, the onetime insurgent who last year led the overthrow of former leader Bashar Assad.

Syrians have endured "brutal and crippling" sanctions over the past 14 years, and it's time to end them, President Donald Trump announced Tuesday in Saudi Arabia as he warned Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions.

Gulf states are keen to invest in Syria, which has important mineral and oil reserves, but had been prevented from doing so by U.S. sanctions. President Trump has now pledged to lift the restrictions.

President Donald Trump has met with the new Syrian leader, a onetime insurgent, before wrapping up his visit to Saudi Arabia. He was also to attend a meeting of the

President Donald Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia marks a significant shift in U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East.

Donald Trump visits Saudi Arabia this week, 80 years after President Franklin D. Roosevelt laid the foundations of longstanding Saudi-U.S. relations based on an ironclad arrangement - the kingdom pumps oil,