I'm John Bats.

Bill Rogers here is my colleague and co-host, and we're having a lengthy conversation with

Ahmed Asharaari of the Foundation for Defense of Democracy, writing about the handshake in Riyadh.

You've all seen elements of the picture around the world.

President of the United States shakes hands with a man who is

undeniably a man with a terror past. Al-Qaeda, ISIS, HTS, Idlib province, now in a blue suit

with a trimmed beard, presenting himself as the president of Syria. Okay. But nearby is Muhammad bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia,

the effective ruler of Saudi Arabia who has big plans in all directions. But what does he gain

from the president of the United States shaking hands with a man who used to be a sworn enemy of

what Riyadh stands for.

Ahmed, that's the question.

What does MBS get out of this?

Restoring what?

To do what?

So, I mean, Saudi Arabia wants Syria to become part of the Arab world in which they, they're

trying to distance Syria from the Turkish influence.

And by spearheading this effort to remove sanctions, I think Saudi Arabia is trying to, first

all, achieve that. And second, seek investment opportunities in Syria as well as the other

Gulf states. They see potential in Syria. They see potential in Syria as well as the other Gulf states.

They see potential in Syria.

They see potential in Syria's resources.

And I think their main goal is to ensure stability in Syria.

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