Word: assad
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Many Israelis believe Syrian President Hafez Assad has observed a cold peace with Jerusalem because he hopes to get his territory back; give up the Golan, they argue, and Syria will lose any incentive to stay in line. Then, says Netanyahu, "nothing would keep Damascus from violating a treaty...
...Assad was referring to the Golan Heights, which Israel captured in the 1967 war. He had told Clinton, he said, that Syria was ready to establish "peaceful, normal relations with Israel in return for Israel's full withdrawal from the Golan," as spelled out in several U.N. Security Council resolutions. That sounds like a simple swap, but Israel has not agreed to withdraw completely. Rabin wants to pull back in stages over several years, testing in the process whether Syria's idea of peace includes diplomatic relations, open borders, free trade and tourism...
...Syrian leader also apparently outfoxed Clinton on the terrorism issue. U.S. officials say that in private talks Assad not only deplored terror attacks but twice promised to repeat his condemnation at the press conference, with specific reference to last month's bus bombing in Tel Aviv, which killed 23 people. But he failed to do so and even denied that terrorism had been discussed "as a separate topic." That forced the White House into a scramble to revise the impression. Flying out of Damascus, Clinton told reporters he regretted Assad did not "take the opportunity to say in public what...
...Clinton headed home by way of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, Israeli and American officials were also busy recalibrating their messages about progress in the Golan negotiations. To keep the tone positive, Israel's officials said they were encouraged by Assad's use at one point in his press conference of the formulation "full withdrawal for full peace." Clinton, meanwhile, was worried that he might have oversold his accomplishment. In what one of his aides called an effort to "modulate," Clinton began speaking of the possibility of progress, rather than actual progress...
Rabin, who has been at this task for so many years, summed it up best: "This is the essence of the peacemaking process. Be patient." That advice certainly applies to the U.S. as well. Assad looks on the peace process partly as a way to improve his relations with Washington and insists he will negotiate with Israel only through the U.S. The Israelis, though stirred by Clinton's vow to "stand with you now and always," would prefer direct talks. In their absence, Israel welcomes the U.S. as middleman. "There is," Clinton said aboard Air Force One, "a very high...