Syrian President Bashar al-Assad (L) holds talks with former US presidential candidate John Kerry (news - web sites). Kerry insisted that relations between Syria and the United States could be improved.(AFP/Sana/HO)
Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia, right, meets former U.S. presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry (news - web sites) at his office in the West Bank town of Ramallah, Sunday Jan. 9, 2005. Palestinians on Sunday held their first presidential election in nine years, choosing a successor to longtime leader Yasser Arafat (news - web sites) in a vote that many hoped would revitalize the Mideast peace process. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)
