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Syria Blames U.S. for âTerrorismâ in Iraq
BEIRUT, Lebanon (AP) - The Syrian foreign ministry called on the United States to pull its troops out of Iraq, saying their presence has led to chaos and terrorism, according to remarks published Wednesday.Sure, Bushra, we can load âem up at Latakia. Nice port, Latakia, should meet our needs for all the equipment and people weâll bring through to get them out of Iraq. Bushra? Hello? There was no terrorism problem in Iraq when the United States entered the country, a spokeswoman for Syriaâs foreign ministry said in an interview with the London-based Saudi newspaper Asharq al-Awsat. ``Now, there is the problem of terrorism and of al-Qaida,ââ Bushra Kanafani said in published remarks. And then his lips fell off! In Washington, State Department deputy spokesman Adam Ereli downplayed Kanafaniâs comments. ``The analysis is faulty, to say the least,ââ Ereli said. But say more please! The United States has repeatedly accused Syria, long on the U.S. State Department list of countries sponsoring terrorism and an opponent of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, of not doing enough to ensure Muslim militants do not slip across its border into Iraq. Syrian officials say the long, porous border makes it hard to stop infiltrators. ``The problem here is not Syria, but America,ââ Kanafani was quoted as telling Asharq al-Awsat. Kanafani said the United States can help restore order if it accepts a timetable for withdrawing its troops from Iraq and allows a greater peacekeeping role for the United Nations. No doubt Syrian and Pakistani âpeacekeepersâ would participate -- hmmm, which ones would I trust less? Syrian President Bashar Assad has also blamed the U.S.-led occupation for instability in Iraq. ``The world has discovered that the war of âliberationâ of Iraq has liberated the Iraqi citizen of the state, the institutions, sovereignty, dignity, food, water and electricity,ââ Assad said in a speech at the Organization of the Islamic Conference summit in Malaysia last month. Not to mention the secret police, political detentions and the shredding machine. ``The Iraqi citizen has become âliberatedâ from the gift of life, and everyone, without exception, has discovered that the excuses which led to war lacked credibility,ââ Assad said, referring to the U.S.-led coalitionâs failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Mind if we look in your country for them? Some crazy rumors floating around, Bashar, we just want to be thorough. In addition to Iraq, Syrian-U.S. ties have been strained over Syrian support for We have some ideas, though. Posted by: Steve White 2003-11-06 |
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