These are the headlines we are tracking for you in this episode of On the News Line:
Macron and Trump's Syria policy
French President Emmanuel Macron has backtracked on his comments which implied he had convinced US President Donald Trump to keep his troops in Syria for the long run. The comments were made after US-led missile strikes on Syria. Despite Macron's claims, the White House has reiterated the US mission in Syria "had not changed." At a news conference on Monday, Macron tried to clarify his previous comments regarding Trump and his policy on Syria.
Petrodollars for US support
President Donald Trump seems to be serious about getting his Middle East allies to pay more for US support. Trump has made no secret of his demand for more Arab petrodollars. Also in pushing Arab states to hand over more of their wealth to the United States, Trump is apparently willing to try every possible course of action. All signs show that he might actually succeed. That’s because many regional Arab rulers like Saudi Arabia’s royal family heavily depend on US support.