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Syria sends Iranian weapons to Hezbollah
Syria has resumed weapons transfers to anti-Israel guerrillas based in Lebanon, including a covert shipment of weapons from Iran smuggled aboard a Syrian cargo plane that had delivered earthquake relief, American and Israeli officials say.
Another one? Or is this confirmation of the last one?
The officials said a Syrian government plane that carried aid to Iran in late December had loaded up with small arms and possibly explosives intended for Hezbollah and Hamas, militant groups carrying out armed attacks against Israel. The Bush administration has repeatedly demanded that Syria halt the flow of weapons to the radical groups, saying that only then would Washington consider an improvement in relations. Administration officials are now preparing a report on policy toward Syria that could lead to new sanctions against Damascus under the Syria Accountability Act approved last year by Congress.

The reports of the weapons shipment appear to derail hopes among some American officials and experts on Syria that the government of President Bashar al-Assad might take a cue from Libya and reach out to the United States and other Western nations. Except for Lebanon, which is controlled by Syrian proxies, Syria is surrounded by pro-American governments, with more than 130,000 allied troops across the border in Iraq. Secretary of State Colin Powell, who met with Mr. Assad last summer, told The Washington Post this week that the Syrians "need to take a hard look at what’s happening in their neighborhood and see whether or not they want to modify some of their policies." Mr. Powell’s spokesman, Richard A. Boucher, said Mr. Powell had been explicit about the need truly to crack down on terrorists, "not just close the office, but make it impossible for them to operate."

On a visit last month to Turkey, President Assad discussed the possibility that the Turkish government might help mediate between Washington and Damascus. "They are definitely on a new path, and the messages they gave to the U.S. are all positive," a Turkish official said, adding that his government is ready to sponsor talks.
Doesn't look that way now, does it?
Also on the positive side, officials say, Syria has cooperated with the United States in identifying and arresting members of Al Qaeda’s terrorist network. The officials say intelligence provided by Syria resulted in the thwarting of at least two attacks against American interests in the last year, one in Bahrain and one in the United Arab Emirates. In addition, Syria has made suspects available for interrogation by the Central Intelligence Agency. The agency, intrigued by the results from these encounters, has urged policy makers to avoid unduly antagonizing the Syrians.

In an interview with The New York Times in November, Mr. Assad called on the United States to reinitiate talks between his nation and Israel. But when Israel’s president, Moshe Katsav, issued a direct invitation last month, Syria backed away, complaining of "media maneuvers."

Edward P. Djerejian, a former ambassador to Syria, said Mr. Assad was trying to reposition himself in a regional landscape that had changed. "There is certainly a reassessment going on in Damascus about its policy approach toward the United States and the region," Mr. Djerejian said. "They’re reaching out now in a way they never have."

Administration officials are eager to point out that Syria stands to benefit from a prosperous Iraq next door, with the numerous prospects for trade and investment, but they say Mr. Assad may not feel he has the political strength to confront an old guard of anti-American advisers. Mr. Assad’s ambivalence seemed on display in his interview with The Times. He said Syria had already complied with many American demands, yet he was quick to criticize the American-led alliance’s difficulties in Iraq. He said any thought of Iraq as a regional model had disappeared for most Syrians in the face of the continuing violence there. "I think before the war on Iraq, some thought about this," he said. "Most of them now think this is a bad example of bringing democracy."
He thinks there's still a chance Iran or al-Qaeda is going to snatch Iraq away from us.

Posted by: Dan Darling 2004-02-06
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=25687