00:00Cheers in Damascus as people celebrate what they hope marks the start of a new era.
00:08On Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to lift sanctions on Syria
00:12after a meeting with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince.
00:16These sanctions, targeting the government of former Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad,
00:21had isolated the country for over a decade.
00:24I thank Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, King Salman,
00:29and all the Saudi people for this moment of chivalry.
00:32Their support has been with us from the day we began the revolution until now.
00:38A million thanks.
00:39Trump said the decision was made due to a recent change of leadership in the civil war-torn country.
00:45In December 2024, current Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa led an offensive that overthrew the Assad regime.
00:52There is a new government that will hopefully succeed in stabilizing the country and keeping peace.
01:00That's what we want to see in Syria.
01:02I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness.
01:10The decision marks a major shift in U.S.-Middle East policy
01:13and signals a move towards normalizing relations with Syria's new government,
01:17a step welcomed by the United Nations.
01:20It was important for us to see relief on sanctions on Syria,
01:25to help the reconstruction of Syria,
01:28to help the Syrian people recover from more than a decade of conflict,
01:35a decade of under-investment.
01:37It comes during Trump's first state visit of his second term,
01:41a tour of Gulf states to discuss investment and foreign policy,
01:44where other major deals are being made.
01:46including a $142 billion U.S. arms deal between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia,
01:53the largest defense sales agreement in history, according to the White House.
01:58It includes plans for state-of-the-art weapons and services for air force advancement and air and missile defense.
02:04Trump is also expected to meet Syria's new president in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.
02:08Still, some observers are urging caution.
02:11You don't want to go whole hog in and invest in any particular regime because even though they've stayed for six months,
02:18there's no guarantee that they're going to continue beyond six months.
02:22There's so much sort of at stake and so much up in the air that things can change in really unpredictable ways.
02:30Trump will head to Qatar and the UAE next,
02:33where leaders are expected to discuss tech investment, manufacturing and military cooperation,
02:38further shifting dynamics in the Middle East.
02:41Patrick Chen and Tiffany Wong for Taiwan Plus.
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