In a sign that President Barack Obama may be seeking better ties, several U.S. congressmen have passed through Syria in the last few days, including Sen. John Kerry, who arrived Saturday and met with President Bashar Assad.The State Department also announced Friday it has scheduled a meeting next week with Syria's ambassador to the U.S. to discuss differences between the two countries—the first such meeting in months. The congressional delegations, led by Democrats, are carrying the message that America wants to engage countries it has been at odds with if they are willing, as Obama puts it, to unclench their fists.
Kerry, who heads the Senate's Foreign Relations Committee, did not speak after his meetings in Syria Saturday. But during his stop in Beirut on Wednesday, Kerry said the U.S. would renew diplomacy with Syria but in return expected Syria to "change its behavior"—particularly on Iraq and Lebanon.
"But unlike the Bush administration that believed you could simply tell people what to do and walk away and wait for them to do it, we believe we have to engage in a discussion," Kerry said in Beirut.
| That isn't what Bush said at all. What he said was, "we will stand with people who stand for liberty." Now tell us, Jawn, just what do you 'discuss' with a ruthless dictator like Pencilneck? |
| "We'll talk, and talk, and talk, and we'll be confident that nothing will happen," he added. |
There are concerns that new American openness toward Damascus may only be cosmetic, because the long-standing differences between the countries have not changed much.
Syria's ambassador to Washington described the congressional visits to Damascus as being "of extreme importance and depth." But he stressed he was still waiting to see if the visits change "the manner of dialogue between us and America."
"Let us see what are the goals we all want to reach, where we agree, where we disagree," Imad Mustapha told The Associated Press in Damascus. Mustapha is to meet with Jeffrey D. Feltman, the acting assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs, according to State Department spokesman Gordon Duguid, in the belief that direct engagement with Syria will advance U.S. interests.
"Our concerns include Syria's support to terrorist groups and networks, Syria's pursuit of nuclear and unconventional weaponry, interference in Lebanon and a worsening human rights situation," he said Friday.
| And allowing terrorists through their border with Iraq. |
But Assad has sent signals he wants to work with Washington. In an interview with the British newspaper The Guardian published this week, Assad
| 'Real' isn't in the Bambi lexicon ... |
"What is happening is not just checking the pulse," he said of the congressional visits. "It is an attempt to define the possible horizons in the relations ahead."