Israel plays down prospects of starting Syrian track
28 Nov 2007 23:21:25 GMT Source: Reuters
By Adam Entous WASHINGTON, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Israel on Wednesday played down prospects of restarting peace talks with Syria at this time despite Damascus's participation in a U.S.-sponsored conference. U.S. President George W. Bush has also shown little enthusiasm for an Israeli-Syrian peace track, casting doubt on the chances of a breakthrough soon. Asked if he saw an opportunity for renewed Israeli-Syrian peacemaking now, Bush told CNN: "That's going to be up to Israel and Syria ... I think what they ought to do is focus on a Palestinian state ... That's what we're focusing on." Syria took part in the Annapolis, Maryland, conference after Washington agreed to allow discussion of the Golan Heights occupied by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war and later annexed in a move not recognized internationally. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he was "happy" with Syria's participation in the conference, adding that he hoped it would be possible to revive negotiations, which collapsed in 2000 without resolving the fate of the Golan. "I hope this will happen. I see on our part a desire that change will occur and I will be happy to see that when it becomes discernible," Olmert told reporters. While Syria's presence in Annapolis could "open additional avenues," Olmert's spokeswoman Miri Eisin said: "We don't think it's feasible now with the present regime. Of course the regime can always change policies. It is something that's constantly being checked." The United States invited Syria at the urging of Arab states in a bid to broaden support for the conference. Syria's deputy foreign minister, Fayssal al-Mekdad, told a closed session of the conference on Tuesday that Israel should pull out of occupied land before Arab countries would normalize ties with the Jewish state. Olmert for months has passed messages to Syria through Turkey and other third parties, seeking assurances peace talks would lead Damascus to sever ties with Hamas Islamists who seized control of the Gaza Strip, the Hezbollah guerrilla group in Lebanon and with Iran, Israeli officials said. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has likewise set a precondition for revived peace talks: an Israeli commitment to a complete withdrawal from the Golan. Tensions flared between the neighbors when the Israeli air force carried out a strike inside Syrian territory on Sept. 6. Some U.S. officials have linked the raid to suspicions of secret nuclear cooperation between Damascus and North Korea. Damascus and North Korea have denied any nuclear ties. (Reporting by Adam Entous and Jeffrey Heller; Editing by Howard Goller)
