U.S. Gestures to Syria Too Little Too Late?
This week, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad derided what they termed U.S. colonialism and envisioned a Middle East without Israel. This bellicosity follows on the heels of overtures by the Obama administration to rebuild diplomacy with Syria. Earlier this week the United States lifted its travel advisory for Syria, although the Arab nation is still on Washington’s list of state sponsors of terrorism. In response to the comments made by the Iranian and Syrian presidents, Israel would like the United States to decide not to send a new U.S. ambassador to Syria; this would be the first since former President George W. Bush withdrew the U.S. ambassador five years ago. For all of the Obama administration’s attempts at renewed diplomacy, it appears that Syria values its ties to Iran more.
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