(AKI) - A report in a Kuwaiti newspaper claims that Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas delivered a secret letter from US President George W. Bush to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad offering Israel's withdrawal from the disputed Golan Heights
In exchange for Israel's withdrawal, Syria would have to end the 'Syrian-Iranian' alliance once and for all.
Abbas reportedly delivered the letter to Assad during his recent visit to Damascus, reported Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth quoting Kuwaiti daily al-Jarida on Friday.
"In the letter, Bush suggested finalising the agreement within several weeks, before the US presidential elections, in order to push the Middle East peace process, an achievement the president will be able to proudly present before leaving the White House in January."
Al-Jarida added that the delegation accompanying Abbas on his visit to Syria "was unaware of the letter or its details, and the US insisted that this be carried out secretly and far away from the official channels."
Following the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel captured the Syrian territory of the Golan Heights and annexed it to its territory in 1981.
Syria and Israel have been technically at war ever since.
Last May, Israel and Syria launched peace talks aimed at a comprehensive peace agreement, under the auspices of Turkey.
Talks reached a stalemate in September and have now been postponed.
Prior to May, the last time both countries initiated peace negotiations was in 2000, when both sides failed to reach an agreement over the fate of the Golan Heights plateau and the shore of the Sea of Galilee, which the Golan Heights overlook.
Iran has identified intolerance of its independent positions by the West as the reason for its failure to win a seat on the UN Security Council. "Obviously the structure of the Security Council is such that it must be said in practice a few special countries make decisions there and impose ideas," Iranian Permanent Ambassador to the United Nations Mohammad Khazaee told IRNA.
Khazaee added, "It is natural that these countries are disinterested in independent ideas or the entry of states that believe in the necessity of re-examining its structure."
Iran's UN ambassador reiterated that some do not have the tolerance to hear an independent voice in a structure incompatible with today's world's needs.
In a vote on Friday for an Asian seat on the 15-seat Council, Tokyo secured 158 votes from the 192-member assembly for the seat at the Council for two years starting in January. Iran had 32 votes.
The 10 non-permanent seats are filled by the General Assembly, with five countries elected each year to two-year non-renewable mandates. To secure a seat, a candidate nation has to win two-thirds of votes cast.
Continued on Page 47
Posted by: Fred ||
10/19/2008 00:00 ||
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[11141 views]
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#1
perhaps if Iran weren't so intolerant. Just saying
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/19/2008 4:11 Comments ||
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