A rchive Date
[ 14-04-2003 ]
Category
[ International Relations ]
sub-Categoy
[ Syria ]
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[http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/World/2003/04/14/64392-ap.html
Syrian leader discusses U.S. accusations
By ZEINA KARAM - Associated Press
Mon, April 14, 2003
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) - The Syrian president met with British and Saudi envoys Monday, and his government denied charges by U.S. officials that Syria has weapons of mass destruction and is sheltering Iraqi leaders.
While those diplomatic efforts progressed, U.S. commanders said volunteers from Syria were among the foreigners helping Iraqis put up resistance against American troops in Baghdad. Navy Capt. Frank Thorp, a Central Command spokesman, said the fighters were often working alone or in small clusters.
In Damascus, Syrian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Bouthayna Shaaban said "of course" Syria has no chemical weapons. Americans "have been talking for years about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. But so far, the presence of these weapons has not been confirmed," Shaaban said. "There are biological, chemical and nuclear weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East region. They are in Israel, not in Syria," she told Lebanon's Al-Hayat-LBC satellite channel late Sunday.
President Bush warned Syria on Sunday not to harbor Iraqi leaders and charged that Damascus has chemical weapons. His administration stepped up its criticism Monday. "We believe in light of this new environment, they should review their actions and their behavior," said Secretary of State Colin Powell. He said other nations in the Middle East might want to review past behavior as well now that Saddam Hussein's government has collapsed.
Powell suggested it was not known how many Iraqi leaders may have crossed the border into Syria. But he said, "these are the kinds of individuals who should not be allowed to find safe haven in Syria. And this is a point we have made to the Syrians directly."
Syria's deputy ambassador to the United States, Imad Moustapha, said the administration's flurry of charges was a "campaign of misinformation and disinformation" meant to divert attention from the "human catastrophes" taking place in Iraq.
Syrian President Bashar Assad met Monday with British Junior Foreign Minister Mike O'Brien, who came to Damascus as part of a tour that would also take him to Iraq. A British Embassy official said O'Brien's visit was "part of ongoing dialogue between Syria and Britain," adding that Britain was interested in conducting consultations on post-Saddam Iraq with all countries neighboring Iraq.
British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, speaking to reporters in Bahrain on Monday, said Syria was not the next coalition target after the war on Iraq but added that it needed to answer questions. In an interview with British Broadcasting Corp. radio, Straw said the United States and Britain would be looking for Syrian cooperation regarding "some fugitives from Iraq (who) may well have fled to Syria, and other matters, including whether they have in fact been developing any kind of illegal or illegitimate chemical or biological programs."
Asked whether he believed the Syrians had weapons of mass destruction, Straw replied: "I'm not sure, and that's why we need to talk to them about it."
Assad also met Monday with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud. Syria's official news agency said they discussed "the situation in Iraq and efforts being exerted by neighboring countries to restore security and stability and to preserve the unity and integrity of the Iraqi territories." Assad talked about the latest Iraqi developments with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak during a telephone call Sunday evening.
Syria has denied that any members of the Iraqi leadership had fled to Syria and says it has closed its border with Iraq. U.S.-led forces captured one of Saddam's half brothers in northern Iraq and said he was planning to cross the border to Syria. Iraq's U.N. ambassador, Mohammed Al-Douri, arrived in Syria on Saturday, a day after leaving New York.
Shaaban, the Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, told al-Jazeera television that Syria wanted dialogue with the United States. "The problem is all the accusations against Syria come from Israel," she said. "Israel is the primary instigator to undermine Syrian-American relations."
 World Fact Book (CIA)]
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