US top diplomat Rubio meets Syrian counterpart

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani in Turkiye on Thursday, the State Department said in a statement.

“Secretary of State Marco Rubio met today with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani in Turkiye following President Trump’s historic May 14 meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia. The Secretary affirmed the United States’ support for sanctions relief to stabilize Syria. He welcomed the Syrian government’s calls for peace with Israel, efforts to end Iran’s influence in Syria, commitment to ascertaining the fate of U.S. citizens missing or killed in Syria, and elimination of all chemical weapons. The Secretary underscored the critical importance of protecting the human rights of all Syrians regardless of ethnicity or religion,” the U.S. State Department said in a statement.

Rubio earlier said that President Trump intends to issue waivers under the "Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act", through which Washington imposed stiff sanctions on former President Bashar al-Assad's government and secondary sanctions on outside companies or governments that worked with it, according to Reuters.