Syrian Envoy to See Key Official

Glenn Kessler (The Washington Post)

February 26, 2009

The Syrian ambassador to the United States has been invited to meet with a top U.S. diplomat at the State Department this morning, signaling a potential thaw in relations between Damascus and Washington.

The United States has not had an ambassador in Syria since 2005, when the Bush administration withdrew Ambassador Margaret Scobey to protest the assassination of Rafiq al-Hariri, a former Lebanese prime minister battling Syrian influence in that country. But the Obama administration has signaled that it is interested in opening the door to warmer relations, including stationing an ambassador in the country again.

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“We knew at the outset that the task would be difficult. We acknowledged that publicly and privately. We knew this would be a road with many bumps— and there have been many bumps—and that continues to this day. But we are not deterred. We are, to the contrary, determined more than ever to proceed to realize the common objective, which we all share, of a Middle East that is at peace with security and prosperity for the people of Israel, for Palestinians, and for all the people in the region. We will continue our efforts in that regard, undeterred and undaunted by the difficulties, the complexities or the bumps in the road.”—George Mitchell, special envoy for Middle East peace, remarks with Prime Minister Netanyahu, September 29, 2010

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