US and Syria discuss Iraq
May 4th, 2007 by ashish
It finally happened. After a number of years of criticizing Syria as a sponsor of terror in the Middle East, the US finally had some discussions with Syria about how to bring some control to the terrorists crossing into Iraq from Syria. Read the CNN article:
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said she raised the issue of foreign fighters entering Iraq from Syria in talks with Syria’s foreign minister Thursday.
The Bush administration has shunned Syria, accusing it of fueling tensions in Iraq and Lebanon, and it assailed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her visit last month to Damascus. But the White House has been under pressure to talk with Syria and Iran, the chief U.S. opponents in the Mideast.
Rice’s meeting with Moallem marked the first such high-level talks since the February 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Syria denies it had anything to do with the killing, but U.S. and European officials have since shunned the Damascus government.
Typically the aim of diplomacy has been to jaw, jaw without conceding major things till you are able to bring about change. This can be accompanied by other pressures such as through regional powers, through economic and social pressures, and so on. However, the Bush administration has refused to even talk to Syria, accusing it of involvement in the Lebanese Prime Minister’s killing (something that may be true).
When you are unwilling to speak to a country, it gets very difficult to influence any kind of change. The Bush administration considers that even speaking to them should be seen as some sort of reward, but not all countries may see it that way. In the current situation, it is very important that Syria cooperate in reducing or eliminitating terrorists transiting through Sryia into Iraq.
