Trump Meets Syria's President, Russia-Ukraine Peace Talks, RFK Jr. On Capitol Hill
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Who is Syria's new president and what was his previous designation by the US?
Just a few months ago, Syria's new president was on the United States list of designated terrorists.
Now he's meeting with President Trump as the U.S. adopts a new stance towards Syria after the fall of Assad's regime.
I'm Michelle Martin, that's A. Martinez, and this is Up First from NPR News. Russia and Ukraine are scheduled to hold peace talks this week. Still unclear as whether President Trump will attend. Ukraine's president questions whether Putin will either.
Russia is not ready for any kind of negotiation.
And Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says his cuts to the Department of Health and Human Services are streamlining the agency. But are they, quote, making America healthy again? Lawmakers get a chance to ask today. Stay with us. We've got all the news you need to start your day.
Politics is a lot these days. I'm Sarah McCammon, a co-host of the NPR Politics Podcast, and I'll be the first to tell you what happens in Washington definitely demands some decoding. That's why our show makes politics as easy as possible to wrap your head around. Join us as we make politics make sense on the NPR Politics Podcast, available wherever you get your podcasts.
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On the Indicator from Planet Money podcast, we're here to help you make sense of the economic news from Trump's tariffs. It's called in game theory a trigger strategy, or sometimes called grim trigger, which sort of has a cowboy-esque ring to it. To what exactly a sovereign wealth fund is. For insight every weekday, listen to NPR's The Indicator from Planet Money.
What are the details and implications of Trump's meeting with Syria's leader in Riyadh?
President Trump is in Saudi Arabia. Yeah, he met in Riyadh with Syria's new leader, who just months ago was on the U.S. designated list of terrorists with a $10 million bounty on his head. The meeting comes after Trump saying he will lift decades of U.S. sanctions on Syria, the country's economy struggling following its civil war and the ouster of the Assad regime.
To talk about this and more, we're joined by NPR's Aya Batraoui in Riyadh. Hi, Aya. Good morning. Good morning, Michelle. So how significant is Trump's decision to lift sanctions on Syria?
Michelle, this could transform the region, not just Syria. And to get a sense of how big this decision is, have a listen to the reaction in the room when Trump announced this. He was at an investment forum in Riyadh in front of the Saudi crown prince when he said this.
I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness.
So this brought Prince Mohammed bin Salman and the entire room to their feet in a standing ovation. And it matters because Syria is a pillar of the Middle East. It's a beacon of culture and intellect. But for more than a decade, it was crumbling and it was impoverished from civil war. This destabilized parts of the region. And throughout, those sanctions were really hurting average Syrians. You know, hospitals were struggling to get spare parts to keep machines or even elevators running. But now Trump says that was then and this is now. And this new Syria, led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, says it's ready to build a relationship with the United States. Now, Trump's meeting with him today lasted half an hour. It included the Saudi crown prince and Turkey's president joined over the phone.
They touched on security concerns that the U.S. has with some extremist groups still in Syria. Another reason this reset matters, though, Michelle, is that Arab states don't want Iran to have a foothold in Syria anymore, and the U.S. doesn't want Russia building back its bases there.
So, you know, we heard those cheers in the room, but is anybody not on board with this decision to lift sanctions? Yeah.
You know, lifting sanctions like this will be a complicated process. Syria is listed as a state sponsor of terrorism, and for that to be changed, this would have to go through Congress. Also, Israel has been carrying out airstrikes inside Syria for months. They call the new government extremists, and they have troops positioned deep inside Syrian territory indefinitely.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is President Trump's new stance on Syria and why is it significant?
0:02
2
Who is Syria's new president and what was his previous designation by the US?
0:02–2:09
3
What are the details and implications of Trump's meeting with Syria's leader in Riyadh?
2:09–5:59
4
How are US-Saudi business deals evolving during Trump's Middle East visit?
5:59–8:57
5
What role does Qatar play in the Middle East and what is Trump's agenda there?
8:57–10:05
6
What is the current state of Russia-Ukraine peace talks and will Trump attend?
10:05–11:35
7
How are Russia and Ukraine using peace talks strategically in negotiations?
11:35
8
What are Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s proposed changes at HHS?
0:33–14:37
Speakers
10 identifiedMore from Up First from NPR
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