Rubio Meets Syrian FM al-Shaibani in Antalya in High-Level US-Syria Talks; Sanctions Relief Confirmed

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a trilateral meeting with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on the margins of a NATO foreign ministers meeting in Antalya, Turkey. The meeting represents one of the highest-level US-Syria diplomatic engagements in approximately 15 years. Rubio confirmed the Trump administration would proceed with comprehensive sanctions relief for Syria, building on earlier waivers granted in early 2025. The meeting also addressed Syria's accession as the 90th member of the D-ISIS Coalition and ongoing US efforts to locate missing American citizens in Syria. Turkey's facilitation of the talks underscores Ankara's central role as a key broker for the Syrian transitional government's international rehabilitation. The Antalya trilateral reflects the alignment between US, Turkish, and Syrian transitional government interests in countering residual ISIS presence and stabilizing the post-Assad transition.