Green Energy
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 is prepared to resume peace talks with Israel, and would like U.S. participation in those talks, U.S. Senator John Kerry said Wednesday.
Kerry, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, met Assad during a visit to Damascus last month, before signs emerged this week of thawing U.S.-Syria relations.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced on Tuesday that the Obama administration would send two senior U.S. officials to Damascus to work on bilateral ties.
Kerry said Wednesday that the Syrian president told him in their February 21 meeting that "he is prepared to resume peace negotiations with Israel and embrace the Arab peace initiative once again."
The Arab initiative, which dates back to 2002 and was sponsored by Saudi Arabia, offered Israel normal ties in return for the return of all Arab land occupied by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war.
"Syria would like direct American participation in these peace talks," Kerry added in a speech Wednesday on Middle East policy in Washington. "And we should play that role if our participation can help move the peace process forward."
Syria held indirect peace talks with Israel under Turkish mediation last year but halted them after Israel's military offensive in Gaza in December and January.
Clinton said this week that once a new government was formed in Israel, following its February 10 election, the Israeli-Syrian peace track would be on the Obama administration's agenda.
The administration of President Barack Obama has been reviewing U.S. policy toward Syria, including whether to return an ambassador to Damascus, a move the former Bush administration had been considering in the final months in office.
Kerry lost the 2004 presidential election to George W. Bush.
The United States would also like to lessen Iran's influence over Syria as part of broader regional peace plans.
Kerry said the United States should have no illusions that Syria would immediately end its ties to Iran. "But that shouldn't threaten us as long as their relationship ceases to destabilize the region."
"I think President Assad understands that as a secular Arab country with a Sunni majority population, Syria's long-term interests lie not with Iran but with its Sunni neighbors and the West," Kerry said.
© Thomson Reuters 2009 All rights reserved
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Jerusalem Post: Nasrallah: Speeches by Obama, PM are a blow to peace By JPOST.COM STAFF AND REUTERS 05/25/2011 19:17 Hezbollah leader urges Arab League to withdraw its Mideast peace process initiative; "Palestinians have only resistance to achieve liberation."...
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Sen. John Kerry calls for Israel to cede Golan Heights and East Jerusalem On a February trip to the Middle East, Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman John Kerry (D-MA) told Qatari leaders that the Golan Heights should be returned to Syria, that...
- Talking The Talk
Could the Administrations message be any more convoluted? Don't answer that. . . Newsmax: Clinton Warns Iran, Syria on Threats to Israel Thursday, 29 Apr 2010 03:43 PM The Obama administration is warning Iran and Syria that America's commitment...
- More Proof That John Francois Kerry Is A Complete Jerk
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Green Energy
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 is prepared to resume peace talks with Israel, and would like U.S. participation in those talks, U.S. Senator John Kerry said Wednesday.
Kerry, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, met Assad during a visit to Damascus last month, before signs emerged this week of thawing U.S.-Syria relations.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced on Tuesday that the Obama administration would send two senior U.S. officials to Damascus to work on bilateral ties.
Kerry said Wednesday that the Syrian president told him in their February 21 meeting that "he is prepared to resume peace negotiations with Israel and embrace the Arab peace initiative once again."
The Arab initiative, which dates back to 2002 and was sponsored by Saudi Arabia, offered Israel normal ties in return for the return of all Arab land occupied by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war.
"Syria would like direct American participation in these peace talks," Kerry added in a speech Wednesday on Middle East policy in Washington. "And we should play that role if our participation can help move the peace process forward."
Syria held indirect peace talks with Israel under Turkish mediation last year but halted them after Israel's military offensive in Gaza in December and January.
Clinton said this week that once a new government was formed in Israel, following its February 10 election, the Israeli-Syrian peace track would be on the Obama administration's agenda.
The administration of President Barack Obama has been reviewing U.S. policy toward Syria, including whether to return an ambassador to Damascus, a move the former Bush administration had been considering in the final months in office.
Kerry lost the 2004 presidential election to George W. Bush.
The United States would also like to lessen Iran's influence over Syria as part of broader regional peace plans.
Kerry said the United States should have no illusions that Syria would immediately end its ties to Iran. "But that shouldn't threaten us as long as their relationship ceases to destabilize the region."
"I think President Assad understands that as a secular Arab country with a Sunni majority population, Syria's long-term interests lie not with Iran but with its Sunni neighbors and the West," Kerry said.
© Thomson Reuters 2009 All rights reserved
-
Jerusalem Post: Nasrallah: Speeches by Obama, PM are a blow to peace By JPOST.COM STAFF AND REUTERS 05/25/2011 19:17 Hezbollah leader urges Arab League to withdraw its Mideast peace process initiative; "Palestinians have only resistance to achieve liberation."...
-
Sen. John Kerry calls for Israel to cede Golan Heights and East Jerusalem On a February trip to the Middle East, Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman John Kerry (D-MA) told Qatari leaders that the Golan Heights should be returned to Syria, that...
- Talking The Talk
Could the Administrations message be any more convoluted? Don't answer that. . . Newsmax: Clinton Warns Iran, Syria on Threats to Israel Thursday, 29 Apr 2010 03:43 PM The Obama administration is warning Iran and Syria that America's commitment...
- More Proof That John Francois Kerry Is A Complete Jerk
From the Astute Bloggers: JPOST: Assad on Sunday called on Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to ditch negotiations with Israel in favor of “armed resistance.” Kerry, nonetheless, said in Damascus following a three-hour meeting...
- Syria Threatens To Take Back Golan By Force
Haaretz: Syria threatens to take back Golan by force Syrian officials threatened on Saturday to take back the Golan Heights by force if a peace agreement involving the return of the strategic plateau is not reached with Israel, Army Radio reported. A...