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ISTANBUL — Sanctions off. Embassies sidelined. Private money in. That’s the Trump administration’s new playbook for Syria, and it’s nothing like the previous U.S. foreign policy.
Since President Trump met with Syrian leader Ahmad al-Sharaa in Riyadh this month and announced the immediate lifting of U.S. sanctions, Damascus has signaled to the rest of the world that war-weary Syria is finally open again for business.
Mr. al-Sharaa is looking to partner with Mr. Trump to jump-start the rebuilding of Syria. Until recently, he was better known as Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, the black-turbaned leader of the Islamist rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.
From a stronghold in Idlib, he waged war against the Assad regime and the Islamic State group. Today, he wears Western suits, leads an internationally courted interim government and hosts American energy executives in Damascus.
His rebranding from jihadi commander to pro-business head of state is transformational and as startling as Mr. Trump’s policy shift. Together, the two men have opened a path for Syria’s return to the global economy, not through diplomacy or democracy but through deals.
Thomas Barrack, longtime Trump adviser and U.S. ambassador to Turkey, joined Sen. Marco Rubio this month at the Turkey-U.S. working group on Syria in Washington. The agenda included trade, investment and the logistics of Damascus’ reentry.
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Humanitarian aid and political reform weren’t part of the calculus.
Instead, with Washington now acknowledging Turkey’s rising influence in Damascus and Persian Gulf capitals moving in tandem, the Trump administration is reintroducing Syria to the U.S. policy map. To do so, the American president is leaning heavily on private-sector channels instead of traditional State Department diplomacy.
In May, the World Bank cleared Syria’s $15.5 million in outstanding debt, thanks to payments from Saudi Arabia and Qatar. This pivotal move made Syria eligible for grants and budget support. The first project, focused on repairing the national electrical grid, aims to restore power to key industries paralyzed by more than a decade of conflict.
Former Syrian diplomat Bassam Barabandi, now advising Syrian-linked investors, told The Washington Times he sees strategy where others might see improvisation. “This is not tactical. This is very strategic,” he said. “Trump wants peace, wants to reduce tensions, which means reducing the money spent on U.S. forces in the Middle East. He wants more economy, more trade with the region. He wants a Nobel Prize. He wants Iran out, and Iran is out.”
Mr. Barabandi said the sanctions relief, which became official Friday, wasn’t just about Syria but was also a bet on regional realignment. “I believe the only thing — the only thing — that made Trump meet with Sharaa is not because [Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman] asked him to but because MBS assured him this person can make peace with Israel.”
He warned that the U.S. could miss out if regulations don’t keep pace with policy. “Say it’s mobile phones. The Commerce Department sees it as dual-use. They say no. China says yes. Even CT scanners or laser scanners, if U.S. regulators overreach, Syria just brings in Indians or Bulgarians or Chinese for oil and gas.
“America lifts sanctions but also sidelines itself. It opens the market for others and blocks its own products.” That gap, Mr. Barabandi said, must close. Some policy advisers close to the administration are encouraging the Commerce Department to clarify what counts as dual-use and ensure U.S. companies aren’t excluded from Syria’s reentry.
Mr. Barabandi also framed Mr. Trump’s move as part of a broader doctrine shift. “This is not Obama’s Iraq withdrawal or Biden’s Afghanistan exit,” he said. “This is Trump announcing victory, stepping aside militarily and letting American business define U.S. presence.”
Abdul Hafiz Sharaf, a Syrian American entrepreneur, told The Times he also views the shift as more than symbolic. A physician by training who has branched into real estate, technology and media, Mr. Sharaf is now developing a luxury project in central Damascus. “It would be a grand, luxurious hotel paired with elegant residential apartments and a stunning shopping center, all in the heart of Damascus,” he said. He even sees the tower as, potentially, a Trump-branded project.
“It would be a symbol of Syria’s shift from the eastern axis to the West,” he said.
Mr. Sharaf has deep ties to Syrian American supporters of Mr. Trump. During the 2024 campaign, he worked to mobilize his community to flip Michigan away from the Democrats. Since the U.S. elections and Mr. al-Sharaa’s rise to power, he has worked to secure the Trump brand for Syria’s post-sanctions recovery.
His team has lobbied for the project on multiple fronts by engaging with the Trump Organization, Rep. Joe Wilson, South Carolina Republican, and senior Saudi officials close to the crown prince. He has also met with municipal and national officials in Damascus and begun securing land for the tower. Discussions are in an advanced stage, and the Saudi Public Investment Fund, controlled by Mohammed bin Salman, has shown strong interest in backing the initiative.
However, Mr. Sharaf isn’t the only high-profile Syrian entrepreneur eyeing Damascus real estate.
Walid Mohammad al-Zoubi, the billionaire chairman of the Tiger Group based in the United Arab Emirates, is advancing his own Trump-branded tower plan: a 45-story commercial high-rise that he says could mark Syria’s return to global markets. Mr. Sharaf’s team claims credit for initiating the Trump Tower concept, but Mr. al-Zoubi’s firm has the scale, track record and capital that counts. With more than $5 billion in assets and a $1 billion project underway in Dubai, Tiger Group gives the Emirati push real weight.
The contrast is financial and geopolitical. Mr. Sharaf brings brand alignment and deep Saudi and Republican political ties. Mr. al-Zoubi offers deep pockets and execution power. Both are chasing the same prize: a symbol of Syria’s new beginning stamped with Mr. Trump’s name.
The Trump Tower duel signifies a broader competition between Saudi Arabia and the UAE over who will dominate Syria’s reconstruction.
Since the announcement that sanctions were to be lifted, Riyadh has announced investment zones for agriculture, pledged support for oil production and greenlit deals in education and housing. Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi-backed DP World signed an $800 million deal this month to modernize Tartus Port. Syria’s government signed a 30-year agreement with French shipping giant CMA CGM to redevelop the Latakia port, annulling a Russian lease signed under Bashar Assad.
Jonathan Bass, CEO of Louisiana-based Argent LNG, met with Mr. al-Sharaa in Damascus this month to discuss U.S.-anchored energy development. People familiar with the meeting said Mr. Bass proposed rebuilding Syria’s oil and gas infrastructure with Western firms and a new national oil company. He emphasized inclusive governance, restoring seized properties to religious minorities, including Jews, and aligning Syria’s economic recovery with Western markets, not China or Iran.
Mr. Bass has since called for accelerating U.S. normalization with Damascus and backing a parallel thaw with Israel so Washington can move toward full diplomatic ties with Syria and secure its strategic and commercial position ahead of rivals.
Antoun Betinjaneh of Habib Betinjaneh Est., whose family enterprise weathered sanctions and war, told The Times that Mr. al-Sharaa’s policies are triggering a shift in investor sentiment. He pointed to the importance of restoring electricity as a prerequisite for industrial recovery.
“We get three to four hours of electricity a day. No bottling line runs on that,” he said. “But we’re a clean country — just $15 billion in debt — and we have skilled people who want to come home. We just need real investment and international credit access,” he said.
He said the World Bank’s debt clearance was a game changer for grants and for signaling a broader return to financial normalcy. He said Syria’s government team is “young, smart and fair” and offers potential investors a different tone from what the business community faced in years past.
“We’re seeing a change. Gulf partners are willing to talk again, and there’s new interest from Syrians in the Emirates, Qatar, Canada and California. Everyone’s watching how the next three months unfold,” Mr. Betinjaneh said.
Meanwhile, other legacy Syrian business families are taking cautious steps toward home.
Imad Ghreiwati, once one of Syria’s most prominent industrialists and now based in Dubai, is reportedly exploring opportunities to reinvest in logistics and infrastructure. His return follows years of asset seizures by the Assad regime, including the takeover of Mr. Ghreiwati’s manufacturing plants and vehicle distribution firms.
What’s emerging isn’t diplomacy in the traditional sense. It’s influenced by capital, and deals instead of declarations.
“Stability in Syria means stability across the entire Middle East,” Mr. Sharaf said. “It opens the door for American companies to lead reconstruction, create jobs, foster growth and strengthen U.S. influence. It’s time to build, not just bomb.”
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