Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa is set to visit Washington, D.C., marking the first-ever visit by a Syrian head of state to the U.S. capital, according to U.S. Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Manama Dialogue security conference in Bahrain, Barrack said the visit is expected to take place around November 10, noting that Washington hopes Syria will join the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS).
A Syrian source confirmed that the visit is planned within the next two weeks. The White House has not released further details, but officials said the trip would mark a significant diplomatic milestone.
Since taking power from Bashar al-Assad in December last year, Sharaa’s transitional government has pursued an active foreign policy aimed at rebuilding ties with global powers after years of isolation under Assad’s rule.
Barrack explained that Washington wants Damascus to become an active partner in the coalition originally formed in 2014 to combat ISIS — the militant group that once controlled vast parts of Syria and Iraq.
“We are trying to get everybody to be a partner in this alliance, which is huge for them,” Barrack said.
Once a leader of an Al-Qaeda offshoot in Syria, Sharaa’s faction broke away from the terrorist network over a decade ago and later clashed with ISIS.
The U.S.-led coalition successfully dismantled ISIS’s territorial control by 2019, but the group has recently sought to regain influence amid Syria’s political transition, according to intelligence sources cited by Reuters.
Syria–Israel De-escalation Talks
Barrack also revealed that Syria and Israel are engaged in U.S.-mediated negotiations aimed at de-escalating tensions. The two countries are reportedly close to a deal that could halt Israeli airstrikes and lead to a withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Syria.
The U.S. is pushing for a security agreement to be finalized by the time of Sharaa’s visit to Washington.
Despite the fall of Assad, deep political mistrust and territorial disputes continue to define relations between Syria and Israel — adversaries for decades in the Middle East.
