- US President Trump hosted Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa at the White House, in an unprecedented event
- Al-Sharaa, once a US-designated terrorist with a $10 million bounty, attended the meeting
- Trump gifted Al-Sharaa perfume and engaged in a light-hearted exchange during the visit
In an unprecedented diplomatic turn, US President Donald Trump hosted Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at the White House on Monday, a meeting that would have once seemed unimaginable.
Al-Sharaa, a former Al-Qaeda commander once branded a terrorist by Washington and placed under a $10 million US bounty, stood alongside Trump in what marked the first official visit by a Syrian leader to the White House since Syria's independence from France in 1946.
The visit comes as the US extended its pause on sanctions on Syria for another 180 days.
‘How many wives? One?' Trump asks Syria's new leader in White House — video
— RT (@RT_com) November 12, 2025
Trump gifted Al-Shaar perfume and went on to SPRAY him with it
‘This is the best fragrance! And the other one is for your wife'
Al-Sharaa assured Trump he only has one wife. Vibe check passed, too pic.twitter.com/SAjO6Vc8GH
A video from the encounter, now circulating widely online, captures a light-hearted exchange between the two leaders. Trump is seen presenting Al-Sharaa with a bottle of perfume, spraying it on him and saying, "It's the best fragrance... And the other one is for your wife." Turning playful, he then asks, "How many wives?"
When Al-Sharaa replies, "one," laughter follows. Trump quips back, "You never know!"
During the visit, Al-Sharaa said he had presented Trump with symbolic gifts, replicas of ancient Syrian artefacts, including what he described as "the first alphabet in history, the first stamp in history, the first musical note, and the first customs tariff."
Acknowledging Al-Sharaa's turbulent history, Trump remarked, "We've all had rough pasts, but he has had a rough past. And I think, frankly, if you didn't have a rough past, you wouldn't have a chance."
Al-Sharaa, 43, seized power last year after his Islamist forces swiftly toppled former president Bashar al-Assad in a lightning offensive that culminated on December 8.
He comes into the meeting with his own priorities. He wants a permanent repeal of sanctions that punished Syria for widespread allegations of human rights abuses by Assad's government and security forces. While the Caesar Act sanctions are currently waived by Trump, a permanent repeal would require Congress to act.
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