Syrian president recounts joke to Trump: 'Why don't you give them New Jersey?'

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa said the Golan Heights belongs to its people and no president may cede it, recounting a joke to Donald Trump.

• Sharaa spoke at an Atlantic Council session in New York, moderated by former US official Brett McGurk, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.
• Sharaa said he joked to Trump at the White House that Trump should give New Jersey to Israel since he owns it, while the Golan has its owners.
• Sharaa said neither the Syrian president, the US president, nor anyone else has the right to cede the Golan.
• Sharaa said Trump supported Syria by lifting sanctions on it, adding that he respects Trump.
• Sharaa said Damascus has held direct talks with Israel for about a year, with negotiations repeatedly coming close to a deal before Israel backed off.
• Sharaa said protecting Syrians' security and rights, and Israel's withdrawal from territories occupied after the previous regime fell, are prerequisites for lasting peace.
• He said the Israeli negotiations had reached about 90 percent before Israel withdrew, and he called for a return to the 1974 borders.
• He said it is inappropriate for the events of October 7 to shape Israel's policy toward Syria.
• He proposed forming an international committee to examine Israel's security concerns.
• Sharaa said Syria has reached a professional level in security and coordination, with support available for training security forces.
• Sharaa said the constitution will be finalized before the five-year deadline and affirmed Kurds are part of Syria's fabric.
• Sharaa rejected quotas in building security, warning they would divide the country on ethnic, geographic or religious grounds.