Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa praised US President Donald Trump during a dialogue seminar on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meetings, praising Trump's support for Syria and his lifting of sanctions, and spoke of a special relationship between them, with a reference to joking about the Golan Heights occupied by Israel since 1967.
AI-generated summary
Israel has occupied most of the Syrian Golan Heights since the 1967 war, and announced its annexation in 1981, a decision that was rejected by the United Nations and considered null and void under Security Council Resolution No. 497.
Al-Sharaa said in a dialogue seminar on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meetings: “President Trump is a man who stood with and supported Syria and issued a historic decision to lift sanctions on Syria.”
He added: "I respect him very much and have a very special relationship with him."
Read more
Moment by moment... world leaders at the United Nations podium: diplomatic confrontations under one roof
He continued: "I was joking with him one day when I visited him in the White House, when he mentioned the issue of his recognition of the Golan, so I told him why don't you give them New Jersey, if you are keen to give Israel some land."
He continued, saying: “I believe New Jersey is for the Democrats and they do not elect President Trump, so it is good for me to give it to them.”
He pointed out, "Trump owns New Jersey, but he does not own the Golan. He ignores this joke. The Golan has its people, and no one, neither a Syrian president nor an American president, has the right to give it up to the other."
Israel has occupied most of the Syrian Golan Heights since the 1967 war, and announced its annexation in 1981, a decision that was rejected by the United Nations and considered null and void in accordance with Security Council Resolution No. 497, while all countries of the world, except Washington and Bogotá, treat the Golan as Syrian territory subject to Israeli military occupation.
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
International demands to end the Israeli occupation of the Golan may be renewed בעקבות Syrian statements
Possible · Within weeks
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte criticized US allies for their excessive reliance on Washington for defense, noting that this problem has been present for a long time, while US President Donald Trump called for the allies to increase their spending on defense to 5% of their gross domestic product, expressing his disappointment with most of them after the start of the war against Iran.

Iraq announced the postponement of its plan to disarm the armed factions until mid-2027, after the original date was set for the end of this month, within the framework of a plan to integrate the factions’ elements, starting with a 90-day period to ensure a cessation of attacks in exchange for not being subjected to American strikes, according to statements by Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and envoy Tom Barrack.
The leaders of more than 190 countries are meeting in New York for the 81st United Nations summit, which is described as hot tin diplomacy, where the war files in the Middle East, the energy crises, and the succession of Guterres top the agenda, amid sharp statements from Trump, Macron, Al-Bashir, Al-Zaidi, and Al-Sharaa about Gaza, Hormuz, Ukraine, and Palestine, a protocollary boycott of the Palestinian delegation, and American restrictions on the Iranian delegation.

US President Donald Trump warned Iran against reaching an agreement or facing mass destruction in his speech before the United Nations, while Israeli Minister Itamar Ben Gvir announced his candidacy for the defense portfolio before the legislative elections, and proposed a security plan that includes encouraging Palestinian immigration and disarming the Palestinian Authority, coinciding with the start of the US embargo on the Iranian aviation sector and the cancellation of flights from Tehran to Baghdad and Muscat.

First Lady Melania Trump's office agreed to grant press passes to CNN and Politico to attend an event related to her "Strengthening the Future Together" initiative on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meetings, one day after President Donald Trump imposed a ban on these networks inside the White House due to what he described as "unfair" media coverage, while Melania is closely involved in the details of their events and adopts an independent approach from her husband on issues such as freedom of the press and artificial intelligence.

US President Donald Trump, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens Frederik Nielsen signed an agreement allowing the United States to build two new military bases in Greenland, while reaffirming Denmark's sovereignty over the territory, during the United Nations General Assembly meetings in New York.