US President Donald Trump will meet with Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa at the White House on Monday, US Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced during a briefing on Tuesday.

The upcoming meeting reflects Washington’s recent efforts to rebuild diplomatic ties with Damascus, following a shift in leadership late last year.

Al-Sharaa assumed power in December, following the ousting of Bashar al-Assad, and has since launched a diplomatic outreach campaign to reconnect Syria with global powers that had isolated it during al-Assad’s rule.

“When the president was in the Middle East, he made the historic decision to lift sanctions on Syria to give them a real chance at peace,” Leavitt said. “And I think the administration, we’ve seen good progress on that front under their new leadership.”

Read more: US greenlights sanctions waiver for supporters of Syria’s transition

Sanctions lifted, previous meeting in Saudi Arabia

In June, Trump revoked most US sanctions against Syria, a major reversal of a previous policy. The two leaders also met during Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia in May, as part of broader regional discussions.

Monday’s meeting will be the first time al-Sharaa visits the White House, marking a significant step in Washington’s recalibrated approach to Syria’s transitional government.

The Trump administration expressed support for lifting US sanctions on Damascus, specifically those imposed under the Caesar Act, according to a State Department spokesperson to RIA Novosti.

"The Administration supports repealing the Caesar Act. Congress should include repeal in the NDAA," the spokesperson said.

They stated that removing the sanctions aligns with the US' broader counterterrorism strategy. 

"Cessation of sanctions against Syria preserves integrity of US primary objective of enduring defeat of the Islamic State (IS, ISIL, ISIS, a terrorist group banned in Russia)," the spokesperson added.

Possible Syrian-Israeli talks during Washington visit

Axios journalist Barak Ravid, citing US Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack, stated that a new round of direct talks between Syria and "Israel" is possible during al-Sharaa's upcoming visit to the US.

Ravid wrote that the upcoming session would mark the fifth round of direct talks between Damascus and Tel Aviv. 

This follows Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's claims in September that progress is being made in ongoing security discussions between the two parties.