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Syrian President Bashar Assad.
 (AP)
Last update - 12:08 28/03/2009
Report: U.S. mulling Obama-Assad meeting
By Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondent and Haaretz Service
Tags: Israel News, Obama, Syria 

The United States is considering arranging a meeting between President Barack Obama and Syrian President Bashar Assad, a United Arab Emirates-based newspaper reported on Saturday.

The Al-Khaleej daily based its report on Arab diplomatic sources in Cairo. They told the paper the U.S. was weighing holding the meeting, the first of its kind in nine years, as a measure to advance the Middle East peace process.

According to the report, the Obama administration is considering the move in the wake of a number of recent meetings between senior American and Syrian officials.
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The diplomatic sources were quoted as saying that should the U.S. decide to go ahead with the meeting, it would be part of a new approach to Middle East peacemaking that involves reaching out to Syria and Iran.

The meeting would likely be held on the sidelines of a G8 summit in Rome in June.

The last time U.S. and Syrian presidents met was in 2000, when Bill Clinton met with Hafez Assad, the current Syrian leader's late father, in Geneva.

U.S.-Syrian relations have long been tense, particularly since the U.S. ambassador was pulled out by the Bush administration in 2005 to protest Syria's suspected role in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in neighboring Lebanon.

Damascus denied involvement but in the uproar that followed was forced to withdraw its troops from Lebanon, ending a 29-year military presence.

The U.S. has also criticized Syria for supporting militant groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah and has accused Syria of not doing enough to prevent foreign fighters from crossing into Iraq.

Syria has said it is doing all it can to safeguard its long, porous border.

On Wednesday, the Lebanese daily as-Safir published an interview with Assad in which the Syrian leader said a clear position by the United States on Israel-Syria peace negotiations was essential to progress in the talks.

In light of the absence of such a position, Assad told the paper, significant progress was unlikely in the near future.


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      1.   Comprehensive Peace 12:46  |  A voice 28/03/09
      2.   Obama and his trap 15:03  |  Brod 28/03/09
      3.   This will please Turkey 18:10  |  Mark Lincoln 28/03/09
      4.   Obama should wear protective lenses 18:24  |  *BEN JABO 28/03/09
      5.   Lincoln, you really should be over there 18:27  |  *BEN JABO 28/03/09
      6.   this is an impeachable offense 21:52  |  vik 28/03/09
      7.   To #5- why not, he met with Israel? 22:22  |  Rachel 28/03/09
      8.   Obama and the dark forces 22:25  |  Brod 28/03/09
      9.   vic, impeach yourself ! 01:31  |  Akiva P 29/03/09
      10.   To Ben-Jabo (#4) Re: Mark Lincoln 03:07  |  flyingdoc57 29/03/09
      11.   # 9 akiva, ask vik if hamas has ever "targetted" americans(3rd tr 11:37  |  eric 30/03/09
      12.   Hmmmm, and if Obama meets Assad before he meets Bibi? 10:15  |  Johnboy 31/03/09
      13.   #12 Johngirl - Dont overly concern yourself 04:30  |  *BEN JABO 03/04/09
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