On Trump's second day in the Middle East, a 'tough guy', cybertrucks and a snub
By Middle East correspondent
Matthew Doran
, ABC
Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani shakes the hand of the US President Donald Trump at the start of a state dinner at the Lusail Palace in Doha on May 14, 2025.
Photo:
AFP / Brendan Smialowski
Donald Trump's visit to the Middle East is certainly sending shockwaves across the region, as the president outlines his vision for relations between the United States and Arab states.
It's been a trip so far complete with jets, Tesla Cybertrucks and a meeting with a former Al-Qaeda militant.
But there's also been notable omissions, of Israel in particular.
Here's what happened on the second day of Trump's visit in the region.
The announcement the United States would lift crippling sanctions on Syria, imposed during the rule of the oppressive Assad regime, was something which had been discussed since the former government was ousted.
But it came as a surprise when Trump used a speech in Saudi Arabia to announce he had been convinced to scrap the measures, much to the delight of his host Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman.
It led to a meeting between
President Trump and the new Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa
on Wednesday morning (local time) in Riyadh.
That is something which would have been considered unthinkable just a couple of months ago, but which people like the Saudi Crown Prince had been pushing to bolster the militant-turned-politician's credentials.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, centre left, looks on as US President Donald Trump departs after a bilateral meeting in Riyadh on May 13, 2025.
Photo:
AFP / Brendan Smialowski
And the pair seemed to have hit it off, with President Trump asked by journalists on Air Force One how he found the Syrian President.
"Great. I think a very good, young, attractive guy. Tough guy," he replied.
"A strong past, very strong past, fighter.
"He's got a real shot at pulling it together."
Trump cited the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who he said felt Al-Sharaa had a "good shot at doing a good job" in pulling together "a torn-up country".
Until December last year, Ahmed al-Sharaa was subject to a US$10 million (NZ$16.5m) bounty.
Trump was asked whether the Syrian leader floated the idea of a Trump Tower project in Damascus.
"No, that I haven't heard. We'll have to wait a little while, when things have calmed down, with the, you know, the country," he said.
"I think he's got the potential. He's a real leader.
"He led a charge and it's pretty amazing."
Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa speaking in Damascus on 29 March.
Photo:
AFP
Trump's trip to the Middle East does not include a stop in Israel - despite his assertions that no American president has ever done more for the country, and the US influence on the war in Gaza.
The president insisted he is not sidelining Israel by focusing his efforts on the Arabian peninsula. This trip is about business.
"This is good for Israel," he told reporters on Air Force One.
"Having a relationship like I have with these countries, Middle Eastern countries, essentially all of them, I think it's very good for Israel."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was quick to announce he would be the first leader to visit Washington and meet with Trump after his inauguration.
And he has returned to the White House for a second visit since.
But a reciprocal journey is not yet on the cards.
It appears there is a growing sense of impatience and frustration in Washington at how the war in Gaza is being managed by the Netanyahu government, and the lack of progress on a ceasefire and hostage release deal.
And there would not be any breakthrough for the US president to announce, if he did appear.
The release of
the last surviving Israeli American hostage
, Edan Alexander on Monday was a gesture of goodwill by Hamas to the United States, and appears to have been done without the direct involvement of Israeli officials.
The White House's special envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff has been in Israel, and has been meeting with the prime minister.
Officials have leaked to Israeli media that the prime minister had asked Trump not to lift sanctions on Syria, and the US has also taken a different path to Israel on dealing with matters such as Iran and Yemen's Houthi rebels.
While he is not heading to Israel on this trip, Trump is still leaving the door open for a stopover in Turkey.
That would be to join peace talks on the war in Ukraine with Volodymyr Zelensky and, if he shows, the Russian President Vladmir Putin.
The Kremlin is refusing to confirm whether the Russian President will attend the talks in Istanbul, after President Zelensky said he would be waiting for Putin in the city.
If the Russian leader does not attend, it will fuel the claims he is not willing to meaningfully engage in negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.
"I know he would like me to be there and that's a possibility," President Trump said.
"If we could end the war, I'd be thinking about that. But tomorrow we're all booked out.
"We've got to go to UAE tomorrow so we have a very full situation. Now, that doesn't mean I wouldn't do it to save a lot of lives and come back."
For Trump, his trip through the Middle East is all about business -
securing hundreds of billions of dollars in investment
for the United States.
One of the deals he signed in Qatar was for the gulf state to spend US$200 billion on 160 Boeing planes, in a massive coup for the American manufacturer.
The timing of that agreement is interesting, given the turbulence President Trump is facing over plans to
accept the gift of a luxury plane from the Qatari government
.
It is a US$400m jet he wants to temporarily use in place of the aging Air Force One.
The issue has sparked major concerns in the United States about the impropriety of accepting such an expensive gift, and the national security risk of using a plane not built for purpose.
The president has expressed his frustration at delays by Boeing to build two new planes for use as Air Force One.
As Trump arrived in Qatar for the second stop on his Middle Eastern trip, roads in Doha were cleared ahead of his motorcade travelling from the airport to the Qatari Emir's palace.
It is a common sight to see legions of police cars, motorbikes and support vehicles in those convoys. Even horses, in the Middle East.
But something caught the eye of onlookers.
At the front of the motorcade, two Tesla Cybertrucks - decked out in the red branding of Qatar police.
Videos posted on social media show the police have been using the angular vehicles for months now, but the inclusion in the president's convoy is notable.
That is because one of Trump's key lieutenants, the Tesla owning billionaire Elon Musk, is travelling with him through the Middle East as part of a delegation of tech leaders.
And when the Qataris are trying to woo the President, every little bit helps.
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