DOHA, Qatar (AP) 鈥� President said Wednesday he urgently wants 鈥渢o make a deal鈥� with Iran to wind down its but Tehran must end its support of throughout the Mideast as part of any potential agreement.
Trump, who is in the midst of a three-country visit to the region, also discussed Iran's rapidly advancing nuclear program in one-on-one talks with Qatar's emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. The American president expressed measured confidence that the U.S. effort with Tehran would 鈥渨ork out one way or another.鈥�
But in comments earlier in the day, at a Gulf Cooperation Council meeting hosted by Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Trump made clear he expected Tehran to end its role as the chief financial backer of the militant groups.
Iran 鈥渕ust stop sponsoring terror, halt its bloody proxy wars and permanently and verifiably cease pursuit of nuclear weapons,鈥� Trump told the GCC leaders. 鈥淭hey cannot have a nuclear weapon.鈥�
Al Thani did not directly address the Iran issue after his session with Trump in Doha. But the emir said U.S.-Qatar cooperation on a broad range of issues was lifting their partnership to 鈥渁nother level of relations.鈥�
The two leaders, and others from their respective delegations, signed a series of agreements, including one between U.S. aircraft company Boeing and Qatar Airways. The White House said the deal was worth $96 billion.
The U.S. and Iran have engaged in since early last month, and Trump has said he believes brokering a nuclear deal is possible but that the window is closing.
The Republican president's latest push on Iran to cease , Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen come as that proxy network has faced significant setbacks in the 19 months since Hamas launched .
In Iran, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called Trump's remarks 鈥渄eceitful" but did not directly address Trump's demand.
Trump said that he also believed the moment was ripe 鈥渇or a future free from the grip of Hezbollah terrorists.鈥� Hezbollah is severely weakened after its in which much of its top leadership was killed, and after losing a key ally with the fall of former Syrian President Bashar Assad, a conduit for Iran to send arms.
Lifting sanctions on Syria
Trump met with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, with the onetime insurgent leader who spent years imprisoned by U.S. forces after being captured in Iraq. Trump agreed to meet al-Sharaa at the end of .
Al-Sharaa was named president of Syria in January, a month after a stunning offensive by insurgent groups led by al-Sharaa鈥檚 , or HTS, stormed Damascus and .
Trump said he decided to meet with al-Sharaa after being encouraged to do so by Saudi Arabia's Prince Mohammed and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He also pledged to lift yearslong sanctions on Syria.
Trump told reporters that the meeting with al-Sharaa went "great" and described him as a 鈥測oung, attractive guy鈥� with a 鈥渧ery strong past.鈥�
鈥淗e鈥檚 got a real shot at holding it together," Trump said.
Prince Mohammed joined Trump and al-Sharaa for the meeting, which lasted 33 minutes. Erdogan took part via video conference.
Formerly known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Golani, al-Sharaa joined the ranks of al-Qaida insurgents battling U.S. forces in Iraq after the U.S.-led invasion. He still faces a warrant for his arrest on terrorism charges in Iraq. The U.S. once offered $10 million for information about his whereabouts because of his links to al-Qaida.
Al-Sharaa returned to his home country of Syria after the conflict began in 2011 and led al-Qaida鈥檚 branch called the Nusra Front. He changed the name of his group to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and cut links with al-Qaida.
The sanctions go back to the rule of Bashar Assad, who was ousted in December, and were intended to inflict major pain on his economy.
State visit to Qatar
In Qatar, Trump was greeted at the airport by Air Force One as it neared Doha, the capital city.
As he sat down for talks at Amiri Diwan, the administrative office of the emir, Trump told the Qatari leader he was impressed with the 鈥減erfecto鈥� marble as well as the camels that took part in the arrival ceremony.
Al Thani said he had high hopes for Trump's efforts with Iran and at ending the war in Gaza.
鈥淚 know that you are a man of peace,鈥� said Al Thani, who later on Wednesday was to honor Trump with a state dinner. 鈥淚 know that you want to bring peace to this region.鈥�
Trump will head to the United Arab Emirates on Thursday for the final stop of his Mideast tour.
Qatar, like the other Gulf Arab states, is an autocratic nation where political parties are banned and speech is tightly controlled. The country has also played a central role in pay-to-play-style scandals around the globe.
In Israel, authorities are investigating allegations that to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to launch public relations campaigns to improve the Gulf nation鈥檚 image among Israelis.
Two European Union lawmakers were accused of taking money from Doha in U.S. prosecutors in 2020 to secure the tournament in the country in 2022.
In 2024, RTX Corp., the defense contractor , agreed to pay more than $950 million to resolve allegations that it to secure business with Qatar. Doha always has denied wrongdoing.
But Qatar has also served as valuable partner to the U.S. Qatar is also home to Al-Udeid Air Base, a sprawling facility that hosts the forward headquarters of the U.S. military鈥檚 Central Command.
It's a key mediator, particularly with Hamas.
The oil-and-gas rich country is also in over its offer to provide Trump with the gift of a luxury Boeing 747-8 that the U.S. could use as Air Force One while new versions of the plane are under construction by Boeing.
The Qatari government has said a final decision hasn鈥檛 been made. Trump has defended the idea even as critics argue it would amount to a president accepting an astonishingly valuable gift from a foreign government.
Trump has indicated he would refurbish the aircraft and it would later be donated to his post-White House presidential library. He says he would not use the plane once he leaves office.
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Associated Press writers Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey, Tia Goldenberg in Tel Aviv, Israel, and Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.
Zeke Miller, Jon Gambrell And Aamer Madhani, The Associated Press
