US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he thought he would remove Syria from the United States' list of designated state sponsors of terrorism. "I think I will," Trump told reporters in response to a question during a meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Türkiye. The US has previously said it is reviewing Syria's designation as a state sponsor of terrorism, which carries restrictions on US foreign assistance, defense exports and certain financial transactions. Last month Trump signed an executive order terminating a US sanctions program on Syria, allowing an end to the country's isolation from the international financial system and building on Washington's pledge to help it rebuild after a devastating civil war. The United States has dismantled most of its Syria sanctions regime and repealed the Caesar Act, which imposed sweeping measures on individuals, companies and institutions linked to former President Bashar al-Assad. But Washington says sanctions will continue to target Assad and his associates, as well as alleged human rights abusers and other actors it says are destabilizing the region. "He's respected by everybody, including me," Trump said, who has encouraged Sharaa's actions against the ISIS militant group in the region.
