Posted on 05/02/2003 8:20:06 PM PDT by blam
Powell Accuses Syria of Past Deceptions
Saturday May 3, 2003 2:59 AM
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) - Accusing Syria of past deception about its Iraqi oil pipeline, Secretary of State Colin Powell said Friday that future relations hinge on whether Damascus takes sincere action toward becoming a Middle East peace partner.
Powell arrived in the Syrian capital Friday evening for tough talks with President Bashar Assad and Foreign Minister Farouk al-Sharaa about the implications for Syria in the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime and the emergence of a U.S.-backed road map toward peace between Israel and Palestinians.
Al-Shaara greeted Powell at the airport and accompanied him to his hotel; Assad and Powell are to meet Saturday.
As his plane coursed toward Damascus, Powell told reporters that he doesn't expect immediate results from these sessions, but will study closely the actions of Assad's government in the weeks and months that follow.
``The real test of the discussion will come not tomorrow or the next day but in the days ahead, after they've had a chance to reflect and we've had a chance to reflect,'' Powell said.
He said he intends to bring up a rack of U.S. allegations that Syria supports terrorism, that it sent technology and fighters to Iraq and gave haven to Iraqi officials as Saddam's rule dissolved. He also planned to call attention to the offices kept in Syria by several Palestinian factions, including the militant Islamic Hamas and Islamic Jihad, which the Bush administration has classified as terrorist organizations.
The Syrians have denied that the Damascus offices are used for planning attacks against Israel. But Powell will expect the Syrians to make clear to the groups that if they cross the line, they will be expelled.
For their part, Syrian leaders will urge Powell on Saturday to support an Arab-backed U.N. resolution calling for the Middle East to be free of weapons of mass destruction, Syria's U.N. envoy said Friday. ``It is clear that Israel is the only state in the region hindering the establishment of such a zone,'' Ambassador Mikhail Wehbe said at the United Nations, noting that Iran also backs the resolution introduced by Syria.
Israel is widely believed to have nuclear weapons, but it refuses to confirm or deny that and is not party to global treaties to control the spread of nuclear, chemical or biological weapons. Wehbe said Syria believes the resolution will spur progress toward peace between the Israelis and Palestinians
Powell said he hasn't forgotten assurances Assad gave him two years ago that oil from Iraq was not flowing through a pipeline to Syria. Those assurances proved false, and that open pipeline gave Iraq extra revenue, and Syria oil at below-market rates - all of which flouted a U.N. program that allowed Iraq to sell oil as long as the proceeds went to help the Iraqi people.
``I will always have that lying in my background software and on my hard drive,'' Powell said.
Powell suggested one action for Syria would be to now pay for the oil at market prices. That, he said, ``would seem to me to be something the new Iraqi government may be interested in doing.''
Powell said he plans to be forceful with Assad - ``we feel strongly about these issues, we will present our case strongly'' - but also plans to listen carefully to what Syria wants.
``What I really want to talk about is the future,'' Powell said. ``What they are looking for, not necessarily tomorrow but in the future.''
Powell said he would tell Assad that the talks the Bush administration hopes to launch between Israel and the Palestinians could blossom into wider negotiations involving Syria. One issue of importance to Syria is the fate of the strategically important Golan Heights.
Ahead of Powell's arrival, an editorial in the state-run Al-Thawra newspaper said changes in the Middle East in the aftermath of the Iraq conflict ``do not constitute reasons that would push Syria into making concessions on land or rights.''
And, al-Sharaa said Thursday that the United States should focus on Israel's occupation of Arab land - a reference to the Golan Heights - but Damascus was open to dialogue in a spirit ``that does not emanate out of hostility or one that meets the demands of others.''
Powell said with Assad, he intends to ``speak clearly, make sure he understands our position'' on the Golan Heights, and come away himself with a thorough understanding of Syria's position, ``so I can take it back'' to President Bush.
Before arriving in Damascus, Powell stopped in Albania to meet with President Alfred Moisiu and Prime Minister Fatos Nano and sign a pair of agreements. One was a U.S.-Albanian accord designed to spare U.S. soldiers who take part in peacekeeping activities from being prosecuted by an international criminal court. Albania is the 32nd country to strike such a one-on-one agreement with the United States.
Between meetings, Powell walked through downtown Tirana and shook hands with a crowd near a local park.
The talks in Damascus are a prelude to a second Mideast trip by Powell next week for meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Mahmoud Abbas, the new Palestinian prime minister. They were taking place amid renewed prospects for Israelis and Palestinians to resolve their bloody 31 months of fighting.
A road map, or blueprint, for negotiations between the two sides was announced Wednesday. It calls for establishment of a Palestinian state within three years, an end to violence by both the Palestinians and Israel, an immediate cease-fire and the dismantling of some Israeli settlements - along with a freeze on new construction.
LOL, what a geek ;-)
No waaaaaaaaaaaay!!!
< /sarcasm >
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