The new Syrian president courted the White House with multiple offers, including a proposal to build a Trump Tower in his country’s capital, in an effort to diffuse tensions between the U.S. and Damascus.
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa prepared the proposal as a negotiating tactic ahead of a surprise meeting with President Donald Trump on Wednesday, according to Reuters.
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Trump ally Jonathan Bass, a U.S.-based businessman and energy developer, told the outlet that Sharaa pitched the investment opportunity during a four-hour meeting on April 30. The meeting between Bass and Sharaa took place in Damascus alongside Syrian activists and representatives from Gulf Arab states.
“Sharaa wants a business deal for the future of his country,” Bass said following the meeting. “He told me he wants a Trump Tower in Damascus. He wants peace with his neighbors. What he told me is good for the region, good for Israel.”
The report comes as a stream of Trump skyscrapers have recently been erected or proposed for development in the Middle East. Other proposals Bass said Sharaa was set to pitch to Trump in exchange for relief from sanctions included allowing the United States to access Syria’s oil and gas, as well as rapprochement with Israel.
Trump did end up meeting with Sharaa on Wednesday, marking a surprise encounter between the two leaders.
They held court in Saudi Arabia, where Trump announced he would lift sanctions against Syria and seek to normalize relations with the country.
In exchange, he pressed Sharaa to sign the Abraham Accords, which would have Syria recognize Israel’s sovereignty and promote stability in the Middle East. Syria also agreed to combat ISIS, a major terrorist group based in Syria and Iraq that has fomented unrest across the globe.
The “fresh start,” as Trump called it, for Syria came after Bashar Assad was ousted as the country’s president in December. Assad reportedly weaponized chemical attacks against his own citizens, prompting U.S. sanctions against Syria that were kept in place for years until this week.
“In Syria, which has seen so much misery and death, there is a new government that will hopefully succeed in stabilizing the country and keeping peace,” Trump said Tuesday during remarks at a U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum in Riyadh that Bass attended.
TRUMP PUSHES FOR ABRAHAM ACCORDS IN MEETING WITH SYRIAN PRESIDENT AHMED AL SHARAA
“The sanctions were brutal and crippling and served as an important function, nevertheless, at the time, but now it’s their time to shine. We’re taking them all off,” he added. “So I say, good luck, Syria. Show us something very special.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio plans to meet this week with Syria’s foreign minister in Turkey, Trump said.