Subscribe to Print Edition | Thu., December 25, 2008 Kislev 28, 5769 | | Israel Time: 23:21 (EST+7)
Haaretz israel news English
web haaretz.com
Haaretz Toolbar
Diplomacy
Defense Jewish World Opinion National
Print Edition
Car Rental
Books Haaretz Magazine Business Real Estate Joy of Giving Travel Week's End Anglo File
Comments:  6
Last update - 16:30 24/12/2008
Assad: I hope Obama will pursue Middle East peace 'sincerely'
By Haaretz Service
Tags: Basher Assad, Syria 

Syrian President Basher Assad on Wednesday expressed his hopes that the incoming administration of President-elect Barack Obama would bring about a change to U.S. policy on the Middle East, to allow it to pursue peace throughout the region "sincerely."

Assad told the Washington Post in an interview published on Wednesday that he had three hopes for the Obama administration's Middle East diplomacy, beginning with an abandonment of the "pre-emptive war" doctrine of the Bush administration.

Assad said he hopes such a move would be followed by support for Syria's indirect talks with Israel and the pursuance of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians and the Lebanese at the same time. The Syrian President said he does not believe any diplomatic track should come first, saying "each track will help the other."
Advertisement
Finally, Assad said he hopes the United States and Syria will work hand-in-hand to stabilize Iraq as U.S. and coalition forces begin their withdrawal, the Washington Post reported.

"We can't turn the clock back," Assad said of the war in Ieaq. "Now we have to talk about the future. We have to forge a process, a political vision and a timetable for withdrawal."

In the interview, Assad said that direct talks with Israel were dependent on assurance that Israel would withdraw fully from the Golan Heights and that the U.S. would act as a sponsor of the talks.

He refused to say whether he would cut ties with Iran as part of a peace deal with Israel, and said the issue of policing Hezbollah is a matter to settle with the Lebanese.

He also called for bringing the Lebanese Shi'ite militia into the negotiating process along with Hamas, saying "Hezbollah is on the Lebanese border, not Syrian. Hamas is on the Palestinian border. . . . They should look at those other tracks. They should be comprehensive. If you want peace, you need three peace treaties, on three tracks."

The Palestinian Islamic group Hamas controls the Gaza Strip and its political leadership is headquartered in Damascus.

On Tuesday, Assad expressed his desire for indirect talks with Israel, saying that they called for "more time and effort", adding that the talks had the potential to lead to direct negotiations between the two countries.

Assad's statements, which came during a meeting of the National Progressive Front, an umbrella group of parties that support the ruling Ba'ath Party, represent his first call for renewed talks since Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni was elected the new leader of the Kadima party.

Assad also said Monday he believes direct peace talks with Israel are possible and that they will eventually take place.

"It's natural that we would move, at a later stage, to direct negotiations. We cannot achieve peace through indirect talks only," Assad said, speaking at a joint press conference with visiting Croatian counterpart Stipe Mesic.

The comments reflect a softer stance taken by the Syrian leader, who only recently rebuked Israel by claiming it is not genuine in its professed desire for peace with its Arab neighbors.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met senior Turkish officials in Ankara this for talks focusing on Turkish-mediated negotiations with Syria, among other topics.

After meeting with Turkish President Abdullah Gul on Monday, Olmert reiterated his assertion that, "Peace with Syria is achievable."

Four rounds of indirect Syrian-Israeli talks have been held this year through Turkish mediators, though no breakthroughs were made. The talks were suspended after outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert announced he would step down.

No new date for the Syria-Israel talks has been set, and Assad didn't say Monday when the indirect talks would resume. They are not expected to go on until after the election that would determine Olmert's successor.

Related articles:
  • U.S. tells Israel: Don't forsake Lebanon for peace with Syria
  • Livni: Syria peace deal must be worth more than scrap of paper
  • Damascus: Talks with Israel only after U.S. and Israeli elections
    • Bookmark to del.icio.us  
     
    Not so funny
    Jewish groups condemn a Belgian public broadcaster for airing Holocaust jokes.
    An endless nightmare
    An Indian paper reports the Mumbai terrorists tortured their Chabad House victims.
      1.   WHAT ASSAD IS REALLY SAYING IS THAT:"HE SINCERELY HOPES OBAMA 18:37  |  glenna 24/12/08
      2.   PEACE !! Are you kidding 19:41  |  Eliezer 24/12/08
      3.   The United States foreign policy 19:51  |  Mark Lincoln 24/12/08
      4.   America is not a nanny 21:30  |  Brod 24/12/08
      5.   As America has done to Isreal 19:16  |  Charles Coker 25/12/08
      6.   think what you can achive with peace 22:49  |  joe 25/12/08
     Read & React
    Jewish parents deny Arab girl place in Jezreel Valley daycare
    Responses: 142
    IDF assault on Hamas approved after massive Gaza rocket barrage
    Responses: 101
    ANALYSIS / Hamas seems to believe Jews 'understand only force'
    Responses: 85
    Israel Harel: IDF should deliver Hamas mortal blow for every rocket fired
    Responses: 23


    More Headlines
    20:20 Lebanon army: 7 missiles ready to be fired at Israel found in south Lebanon
    21:13 Grad missile, 5 Qassams strike Negev as IDF readies to hit back
    22:52 Barak warns: Hamas will pay a 'heavy price'
    20:47 Ahmadinejad Christmas address to U.K. viewers sparks angry row
    22:52 Report: Mumbai terrorists badly tortured Chabad House victims
    19:48 Israel sentences PFLP leader to 30 years in prison
    15:31 Jewish groups blast Belgian TV for comic's Holocaust jokes
    13:15 Tourists flock to Bethlehem as city basks in Christmas spotlight
    14:24 ANALYSIS / Hamas seems to believe Jews 'understand only force'
    19:36 Nobel-laureate playwright Harold Pinter dies aged 78
    18:52 Ministry slams government decision to cut back on school security
    14:55 Terrorists go digital, using iPhones, Google to coordinate attacks
    10:53 Leftist Meretz issues rare call for military action against Hamas
    14:22 Police suspect Bnei Brak woman killed friend then reported death
    05:15 Bones found at rabbi's tomb on Mount Meron ignite uproar
    18:26 After 4,300 years, pharaonic tombs unearthed in Egypt
    Previous Editions
    Special Offers
    Advertisement
    Summer in Israel
    Israeli style - Tzofim Chetz V'Keshet 2009
    SURF RAMBAM
    Keep current about new-wave medical care, education and research.
    Summer Camp in Israel
    The best place for your children this summer
    Academic Studies in Israel
    All the Q & A at the IDC HERZLIYA Open House, January 9,2009
    Fattal Hotel Chain
    Perfectly located hotels on best resorts of Israel.
    Car rental in Israel
    Shlomo Sixt Receive $15.00 from our low rates.
    Eldan Rent a Car
    Israel's leading car rental company offers you a 20% discount on all online reservations
    Jewish Singles Personal Ads
    Find the love of your life on JDate.com
    Hebrew Summer courses
    From $39.95
    Junkyard
    Junk a car - get free towing nationwide and a tax-deductible receipt
    Home | TV | Print Edition | Diplomacy | Opinion | Arts & Leisure | Sports | Jewish World | Underground | Site rules |
    Real Estate in Israel | Travel to Israel with Haaretz | Hotels Israel | Restaurants Israel | Tourist attractions Israel | Shops Israel
    birthright Israel | Search engine marketing
    Haaretz.com, the online edition of Haaretz Newspaper in Israel, offers real-time breaking news, opinions and analysis from Israel and the Middle East. Haaretz.com provides extensive and in-depth coverage of Israel, the Jewish World and the Middle East, including defense, diplomacy, the Arab-Israeli conflict, the peace process, Israeli politics, Jerusalem affairs, international relations, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the Israeli business world and Jewish life in Israel and the Diaspora.
    © Copyright  Haaretz. All rights reserved