Green Energy
Haaretz:
Report: U.S. in secret talks with Syria over peace accord with Israel
Kuwaiti newspaper al-Rai reports U.S. believes Syria ready to distance itself from Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas.
By DPA
The United States has been in secret contact with Syrian officials in the hopes of realizing a comprehensive Israel-Syrian peace treaty, the Kuwaiti al-Rai newspaper reported Saturday.
The past few weeks had witnessed an "unprecedented Syrian cooperation" in the peace process, prompting Washington to talk with Syrian officials to reach a peace agreement between Syria and Israel, informed sources told al-Rai.
Sources said Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem had sent positive signals to the U.S. showing that "the Syrians are ready to re-engage in dialogue with the Israelis to reach peace".
President Barack Obama's administration believes that an Israeli-Syrian peace agreement will be "a breakthrough in the peace process as a whole to achieve peace in the Palestinian territories."
Sources said that Obama adviser Dennis Ross told the U.S. administration that he found "Syria ready to move away from Iran and reduce relations with Hezbollah and Hamas, and work with the United States in the fight against terrorism."
Israel, for its part, apparently expressed a willingness to return the Golan Heights to Syria, reach an agreement on water rights, and normalize relations with Damascus.
Syrian demands the return of the Golan, a strategic plateau overlooking northern Israel, as a prerequisite for any peace deal.
Israel captured the Golan in the 1967 Six Day War, and in 1981 parliament passed a law applying Israeli "laws, jurisdiction and administration" to the territory, in effect annexing it. The annexation was not recognized internationally.
Direct Israeli-Syrian peace talks fell apart in 2000, over a dispute over Syrian access to the Sea of Galilee, as per the de facto border which existed prior to the 1967 war.
Turkish mediated Israeli-Syrian talks also failed to produce any breakthrough.
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Green Energy
Haaretz:
Report: U.S. in secret talks with Syria over peace accord with Israel
Kuwaiti newspaper al-Rai reports U.S. believes Syria ready to distance itself from Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas.
By DPA
The United States has been in secret contact with Syrian officials in the hopes of realizing a comprehensive Israel-Syrian peace treaty, the Kuwaiti al-Rai newspaper reported Saturday.
The past few weeks had witnessed an "unprecedented Syrian cooperation" in the peace process, prompting Washington to talk with Syrian officials to reach a peace agreement between Syria and Israel, informed sources told al-Rai.
Sources said Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem had sent positive signals to the U.S. showing that "the Syrians are ready to re-engage in dialogue with the Israelis to reach peace".
President Barack Obama's administration believes that an Israeli-Syrian peace agreement will be "a breakthrough in the peace process as a whole to achieve peace in the Palestinian territories."
Sources said that Obama adviser Dennis Ross told the U.S. administration that he found "Syria ready to move away from Iran and reduce relations with Hezbollah and Hamas, and work with the United States in the fight against terrorism."
Israel, for its part, apparently expressed a willingness to return the Golan Heights to Syria, reach an agreement on water rights, and normalize relations with Damascus.
Syrian demands the return of the Golan, a strategic plateau overlooking northern Israel, as a prerequisite for any peace deal.
Israel captured the Golan in the 1967 Six Day War, and in 1981 parliament passed a law applying Israeli "laws, jurisdiction and administration" to the territory, in effect annexing it. The annexation was not recognized internationally.
Direct Israeli-Syrian peace talks fell apart in 2000, over a dispute over Syrian access to the Sea of Galilee, as per the de facto border which existed prior to the 1967 war.
Turkish mediated Israeli-Syrian talks also failed to produce any breakthrough.
- Syrians Want Peace With Israel
so says a former Presidential Candidate Do you get the feeling The O Team is wandering cluelessly in deserto? NewsMax Sen. Kerry: Syrians Want Peace With Israel, U.S. Help Thursday, March 5, 2009 8:16 AM WASHINGTON -- Syrian President Bashar al-Assad...
- An Agreement With Syria, But For Whom?
Maariv reported on Friday morning that an agreement between Israel and Syria is within reach and both sides have agreed to pay the price (link in Hebrew). The only 'problem' is Prime Minister Ehud K. Olmert's miserable political standing....
- Peace Deal ? Israel And Syria ? Wait Till You See The Terms
Stratfor has received an unconfirmed report that the U.S. administration is currently reviewing a peace agreement drafted by Syria and Israel. Some of the terms of the alleged deal involve Syria regaining its military, political and economic...
- Syria Fires At Israeli Aircraft
Hmm: Syrian air defenses opened fire on IAF aircraft that violated Syrian airspace overnight Thursday, a Syrian military spokesman said. "We warn the Israeli enemy government against this flagrant aggressive act, and retain the right to respond in an...
- And In The Too Good To Be True Venue, From Haaretz -israelis, Syrians Reach Secret Understandings For Peace
In a series of secret meetings in Europe between September 2004 and July 2006, Syrians and Israelis formulated understandings for a peace agreement between Israel and Syria. The main points of the understandings are as follows: # An agreement of principles...