The White House expects Syria to normalize relations with Israel amid "quiet talks."

US President Donald Trump expects Syria to be the next country to join the Abraham Accords normalization agreements with Israel, according to statements made by White House Press Secretary Carolyn Levitt on June 27.

Speaking to reporters, Levitt said, "The president is certainly optimistic that more countries in the region will sign the Abraham Accords," noting that Trump raised the issue directly with the new Syrian president, Ahmed al-Sharaa.

"When President Trump met with President Assad, one of his main requests was for Syria to join the Abraham Accords," Levitt said. "We want to see long-term peace in the Middle East, and that's the way forward."

While Levitt did not specify a specific timeline, she emphasized that expanding the Abraham Accords remains a priority for the administration. Echoing this sentiment, Trump's envoy to the region, Steve Witkoff, told CNBC on Wednesday that "major announcements" were coming, hinting that new countries previously considered unlikely were preparing to normalize relations with Israel.

Syria's potential accession to the Abraham Accords would represent a major geopolitical shift.

Sharaa has previously indicated his openness to normalization. In April, he told US Representative Cory Mills that Syria was willing to join the agreements under the "right conditions."

Strategic calculations appear to be influencing Damascus's position. Israeli airstrikes on Iranian targets, reportedly launched from Syrian airspace during the 12-day Israeli-Iranian conflict, were met with no resistance from Syria.

Analysts, including Israeli Professor Amatzia Baram of the University of Haifa, suggest that Syria's neutrality stems from strategic self-interest. He told the Israeli newspaper Maariv: "If I were Sharaa, I would have no interest in disrupting Israeli operations against Iran... Every blow to Iran benefits the new regime in Damascus, which sees Tehran as a major strategic competitor."

US Special Envoy to Syria Thomas Barak confirmed that Syria and Israel are holding "quiet talks" on a range of diplomatic and security issues, Syria TV reported on Friday.

Barak urged observers to give the Syrian government "a chance to demonstrate its new approach."

Syria TV added that Hebrew media outlets quoted unidentified Syrian officials as saying they "do not rule out peace with Israel before the end of Trump's term," and that "direct daily dialogue" is underway.

Al-Sharaa, who was known as Abu Muhammad al-Julani, took power in Damascus on December 9, 2024, after the overthrow of the government of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. In 2011, the United States, Israel, and their regional allies waged a covert war to overthrow Assad using extremist fighters affiliated with al-Qaeda. The CIA and MI6 operation to support these extremists, known as "Timber Sycamore," culminated in militants from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham seizing power and forming a new government after Assad's fall—which is precisely what happened.