{"id":2212,"date":"2009-02-22T04:53:48","date_gmt":"2009-02-22T04:53:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/joshualandis.com\/blog\/?p=2212"},"modified":"2009-02-22T08:19:35","modified_gmt":"2009-02-22T08:19:35","slug":"kerrys-visit-brings-hopefulness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/joshualandis.com\/blog\/kerrys-visit-brings-hopefulness\/","title":{"rendered":"Kerry’s Visit Brings Some Hope"},"content":{"rendered":"
Syrian talks with Kerry were promising, evidently, despite lots of background noise chastising Syria for seeking to regain its territory occupied by Israel whether by building up its military or supporting other Israeli opponents.<\/div>\n
\"Syrian<\/a>

Syrian President Bashar Assad meets with US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry at the Syrian presidential palace in Damascus on Saturday (AP photo)US Sen. Kerry hopeful after Syria talks<\/p><\/div>\n

By SAM F. GHATTAS \u2013 2 hours ago<\/p>\n

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) \u2014 U.S. Sen. John Kerry said after talks with Syria’s president Saturday that there are possibilities for “real cooperation” between the two nations, which have been at odds for years.<\/p>\n

Relations soured under the Bush administration, and Kerry and other members of Congress who have come to the Syrian capital in the last week explored the possibilities for better relations after President Barack Obama signaled he wanted to talk to opponents.<\/p>\n

Kerry told a small group of reporters at the U.S. Embassy he was encouraged by the “very long, candid, open” discussion with President Bashar Assad Saturday and that he sees the possibility of progress ahead.<\/p>\n

“While we will disagree on some issues for sure, what I heard and what I will take back with me and hopefully what we could put in place to take advantage of it, is the possibility of real cooperation on a number of different issues beginning immediately, beginning soon.”….<\/p>\n

He did not elaborate, but the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee did say he heard from the Syrians “a great willingness” to share in efforts with respect to Iraq.<\/p>\n

During a stop in Beirut on Wednesday, Kerry said the U.S. expected Syria to “change its behavior” \u2014 particularly on Iraq and Lebanon \u2014 in return for renewing diplomacy with Damascus.<\/p>\n

Kerry said there is an opportunity with Obama in the White House and a Democratic-controlled Congress “to put in place a different approach.”<\/p>\n

Assad told Kerry and U.S. Rep. Howard Berman, whom he met with separately earlier in the day, that “the policy of dictation has proven useless and that dialogue is the only way” to solve problems, according to Syria’s official news agency, SANA…..<\/p>\n

Syria’s ambassador to Washington described the congressional visits to Damascus as being “of extreme importance and depth.” But he stressed he was still waiting to see if the visits change “the manner of dialogue between us and America.”<\/p>\n

“Let us see what are the goals we all want to reach, where we agree where we disagree … what are the easy and difficult obstacles, things that we can postpone until later,” Imad Mustapha told The Associated Press in Damascus. He said the U.S. was still re-evaluating its policy toward Syria.<\/p>\n

Already during their trips to the Mideast, Kerry and Cardin repeated the previous American language demanding Damascus change its ways in terms of its ties to Iran and backing of militant groups such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Palestinian Hamas.<\/p>\n

“We’re looking for actions, and we will have a good frank discussion about what those expectations are,” Kerry said during his stop in Beirut earlier this week.<\/p>\n

Sateh Noureddine, the managing editor of Lebanon’s As-Safir newspaper that is supportive of Syria, said Kerry’s message indicated that optimism over budding U.S.-Syria relations was exaggerated.<\/p>\n

The U.S. is seeking “a conditional dialogue, not openness,” and it is too early to tell its outcome, he said. “It is a step backward.”<\/p>\n

U.S.-Syrian relations grew tense after Damascus staunchly opposed the 2003 U.S. invasion of neighboring Iraq. Relations soured further when the Bush administration pulled the U.S. ambassador out of Syria in 2005 to protest Syria’s suspected role in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.<\/p>\n

Damascus denied involvement in Hariri’s death, but in the uproar that followed, it was forced to withdraw its troops from Lebanon, ending a 29-year military presence.<\/p>\n

The United States also wants Syria to stop helping militants, control its borders with Iraq and Lebanon, and help stabilize Lebanon. Washington also would like Syria to step back from its close relations with Iran, a longtime ally.<\/p>\n

But Syria refuses to stop backing the militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah and insists it’s doing all it can to safeguard its long, porous border. It also says it’s willing to help stabilize Iraq….<\/p>\n

Syrian political analyst Imad Shueibi was optimistic that U.S.-Syria relations would change from a period of “the wrestling of wills to the sharing of wills.”<\/p>\n

“What is happening is not just checking the pulse,” he said of the Congressional visits. “It is an attempt to define the possible horizons in the relations ahead.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Defence chiefs urge hawk Netanyahu to strike deal with Syria<\/a><\/p>\n

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