WASHINGTON — The top US military commander overseeing forces in the Middle East, Navy Adm. Brad Cooper, met with Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus on Friday, marking a new level of diplomacy as Washington pushes the fractured country's various sides to integrate after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime.

US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, who is dual-hatted as Washington’s special envoy for Syria, also attended the meeting, according to the Syrian presidency and US Central Command.

“During the meeting, Cooper and Barrack thanked President al-Sharaa for his support to counter ISIS in Syria,” CENTCOM stated in its press release. “Eliminating the ISIS threat in Syria will reduce the risk of an ISIS attack on the US homeland while working towards President Trump's vision of a prosperous Middle East and a stable Syria at peace with itself and its neighbors,” it read. 

The press release went on, “Cooper and Barrack also offered praise to Syria for supporting the recovery of US citizens inside the country, and committed to continuing efforts that support US goals in the Middle East, including negotiations for the integration of various Syrian armed groups into the new Syrian Government’s military.”