US President Donald Trump has made the call to lift all American sanctions on Syria, giving the country a "chance at greatness."
He also met with de facto Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, local time.
It makes him the first US president in 25 years to meet with a Syrian leader.
Sanctions were placed on Syria during the former dictatorship of Bashar al-Assad, and there have been growing calls to lift the restrictions to help the country recover.
The US issued a six-month exemption for some sanctions to encourage aid in January, but remained firm on its stance on Syria.
In April it gave the country a list of demands to meet if it wanted all American sanctions lifted.
Hours after his arrival in the Middle East, Donald Trump promoted a major policy shift on Syria and hinted at a new relationship with its president.
The Syrian president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, remains a listed terrorist according to the US government under his nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Golani.
The insurgent group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), that he led to storm Damascus and overthrow the Assad family's 54-year rule of Syria, is also a listed terrorist organisation, according to the US.
Here's why Mr Trump has met with Ahmed al-Sharaa.
What happened in the meeting?
The two held brief talks ahead of a larger gathering of Gulf leaders in Saudi Arabia during Mr Trump's tour of the region, a White House official said.
Mr Trump's office previously said it would just be to "say hello".
Photos posted on Saudi state television showed the two men shaking hands in the presence of Saudi Arabia's crown prince.
Mr Trump also urged Mr al-Sharaa to normalise ties with Israel, a White House spokesperson said.
What has Trump said on the sanctions?
Donald Trump said he would remove all sanctions on Syria, saying they had served an important function, but it was time for Syria to move forward.
He added steps were being taken to restore normal relations with Syria.
"I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness," he said.
"It's their time to shine. We're taking them all off. Good luck Syria, show us something very special."
Mr Trump said the effort at rapprochement came at the urging of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Saudi de facto ruler, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
He said steps were being taken to restore normal relations with Syria, and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio would meet his Syrian counterpart this week.
Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani said it marked a turning point for the Syrian people in their efforts to rebuild.
"We ... stand ready to foster a relationship with the United States that is rooted in mutual respect, trust and shared interests," he said.
He also said Trump could get a "historic peace deal and victory for US interests in Syria," without elaborating what that meant.
Mr Trump added "there is a new government that will hopefully succeed" and that his plan is to build a relationship with Syria and President al-Sharaa.
"In Syria, they've had their share of travesty, war, killing many year," Mr Trump said.
"That's why my administration has already taken the first steps toward restoring normal relations between the United States and Syria for the first time in more than a decade."
Is al-Sharaa a terrorist?
According to the United States, yes.
His alias remains on the current list of Terrorists and Groups Identified Under Executive Order 13224 in the US.
He joined the ranks of al-Qaeda insurgents battling US forces in Iraq after the US-led invasion and still faces a warrant for his arrest on terrorism charges in Iraq.
America once offered $US10 million ($15.4 million) for information about his whereabouts because of his links to al-Qaeda. The US dropped the bounty in December.
Mr al-Sharaa came back to his home country after the conflict began in 2011 and led al-Qaeda's branch that used to be known as the Nusra Front.
He later changed the name of his group to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and cut links with al-Qaeda.
The group HTS is also currently listed as a terrorist group by the US and it is on the United Nations Security Council Consolidated List.
In January, the group was technically dissolved in order to form a new Syrian government after the fall of Assad.
Trump fast forwards US demands on Syria
Two weeks ago, the US publicly spelled out at the United Nations the steps it wanted Syria to take before it would change its stance toward the country.
Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani appealed for tough US sanctions to be lifted.
However acting US Ambassador to the UN Dorothy Shea said the US wants Syria's authorities to fully renounce and suppress terrorism, adopt a policy of non-aggression to neighbouring states, exclude foreign terrorist fighters from any official roles, prevent Iran and its proxies from exploiting Syrian territory, destroy weapons of mass destruction, assist in the recovery of US citizens disappeared in Syria, and ensure the security and freedoms of all Syrians.
"The United States continues to observe the actions of the interim authorities and will determine our actions based on a pattern of behaviour. The core leadership must move beyond its past," Ms Shea told the 15-member Security Council on April 25.
The United Nations, which has been pushing countries to lift sanctions on Syria, also welcomed the move.
"It was important for us to see relief on sanctions on Syria to help the reconstruction of Syria, to help the Syrian people recover from more than a decade of conflict, a decade of under investment," said UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
Donald Trump's decision to remove sanctions signals a major policy shift for the US on Syria.
Can Trump just lift the sanctions?
Syria has been designated a state sponsor of terrorism since December 1979, according to the US and that resulted in many strict sanctions.
Today, Donald Trump has said he has removed "all of them."
As the president of the United States he does have the power to do that, through revoking or creating executive orders.
In terms of the terrorist tag, the US Immigration and Nationality Act says there are methods for revoking a foreign terrorist designation.
All of which require the US secretary of state to revoke the designation.
The US president cannot revoke it personally, but can advise the secretary of state to do so.
Marco Rubio, current US secretary of state is meeting with Syrian officials this week.
Speaking in January, a senior White House official said it is unclear if the US would lift its terrorist designation on HTS and on Ahmed al-Sharaa.
"Whether or not and how [a designation lift] would be addressed I think is something that we'll have to look to down the line," the official said.
Could Australia follow suit?
The Australian government currently has a "do not travel" warning in place for Syria due to "the dangerous security situation and the threat of armed conflict, air strikes, terrorism, arbitrary detention and kidnapping."
Australia also still lists Hayat Tahrir al-Sham as a terrorist organisation.
And the government still has sanctions imposed on Syria, which the government say "reflect Australia's grave concern at the Syrian regime's deeply disturbing and unacceptable use of violence against its people."
There is no indication whether or not the Albanese government will lift the sanctions.
ABC/Wires
