Word: damascus
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...July 2008 in Paris, and his high visibility in his current six-month stint as President of the European Council, stand in striking contrast to the leaden final years of François Mitterrand's second term, or to the two mandates of Jacques Chirac. From the Caucasus to Damascus, it seems, France is back...
...same ambivalence prevails in France's diplomatic overtures in the Middle East. Beyond the Libyan episode, which is full of savory anecdotes, lies the question of Syria. Damascus' role in the Middle East remains potentially important, even if it has decreased with time. Sarkozy's engagement with Syria is both daring and legitimate, but it is not clear that it makes peace in the Middle East any more likely...
...Assad really wants to end Syria's habit of trouble-making and re-enter the community of nations, but until recently had been undermined by the older elements of the regime left over from his father's days," says one French official involved France's evolving relationship with Damascus. "He's not perfect, and there are still real problems with human rights and the treatment of political prisoners in Syria. Still, there are enough signs of change and a willingness to work together that we can't let that kind of opportunity pass...
...Whereas Chirac had relied on Saudi Arabia as his primary Arab interlocutor, Sarkozy appears to have turned to Qatar as the key intermediary to re-establish contacts and prepare visits and exchanges between Paris and Damascus. Evidence of Qatar's mediating role is clear in the fact that the Gulf State will participate, along with Turkey, in a four-nation summit Thursday during the second day of Sarkozy's Syria visit...
...Whatever its views on the tactics of the visit, the strategic perspective behind Sarkozy's outreach to Damascus is one shared by the Bush Administration: French diplomats detect growing daylight between Damascus and its key regional ally, Iran - and they believe that Damascus could further distance itself from Tehran if Sarkozy can persuade Assad that he has far more to gain by being a cooperative and accountable partner to the West. That would help pursue wider U.S. interests of narrowing Iran's scope for using its ally in Lebanon's Shi'ite Hizballah movement as a proxy, and also...