Donald Trump

On Monday, the Syrian president shook hands with Trump at the White House. Speaking to Al Majalla, a former State Department official explains why this is a moment she could have never imagined.

In what could be a historic turning point in US-Syria relations, the new government in Damascus will likely join the international coalition against the Islamic State (IS)

Ahmed al-Sharaa will be the first Syrian president to be welcomed at the White House on Monday. From Nixon to Clinton, Al Majalla looks back at official encounters between the two states since 1945.

A US military intervention would be a disaster in an already divided country

He will be expected to play an active role in getting Iraq to disband armed factions, as pressure from Washington is expected to intensify

Al Majalla examines key developments in the US and across the globe less than a year into Trump's second presidential term

The World Trade Organisation has effectively ceased to function, and many are of the view that the global trading system, as we know it, is dead

The US president dislikes multilateralism and deprioritises values-based alliances, instead preferring to do bilateral business with dealmakers, leaving the postwar order in tatters

The West's response to Israel's war on Gaza exposed its weakness and damaged its collective reputation, while also eroding civil liberties at home