日韩精品久久一区二区三区_亚洲色图p_亚洲综合在线最大成人_国产中出在线观看_日韩免费_亚洲综合在线一区

   

Syria says it wants talks with US

(AP)
Updated: 2007-03-13 07:25

DAMASCUS, Syria - Syria told a visiting U.S. State Department official Monday that it is willing to engage in "serious" dialogue with Washington on all Middle East issues, just days after both countries attended a conference in Baghdad on restoring security to Iraq.

Ellen Sauerbrey, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for population, refugees and migration, is the most senior American official to visit Syria since the U.S. withdrew its ambassador following the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

U.S. officials rarely visit Syria, although Washington has said in recent months it wants to reach out to Damascus over the fate of the estimated 1.5 million Iraqi refugees that have sought sanctuary in Syria since the beginning of the Iraq war.

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack stressed that Sauerbrey's trip was not a "bilateral mission," saying she was accompanying the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees on a humanitarian visit to discuss the refugee crisis.

Her visit, however, comes days after an international conference was held in Baghdad bringing together Syrian, Iranian and U.S. officials to discuss security in Iraq.

Syria has frequently called for dialogue with the U.S., but President Bush had previously rejected any direct talks with officials from Syria and Iran, accusing both of them of supporting an influx of foreign fighters into Iraq. Both countries have repeatedly denied the charges.

U.S.-Syrian relations have also been strained in recent years because of Damascus' support for Palestinian militant groups and the Lebanese Hezbollah. The U.S. withdrew its ambassador from Syria to protest Hariri's assassination, which many Lebanese blame on Damascus. Syria has denied being involved.

Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Fayssal Mekdad told reporters following a one-hour meeting with Sauerbrey that none of the region's problems will be solved without dialogue and cooperation.

"All the issues in the Arab world are related to each other and it is necessary to have comprehensive dialogue on all these issues," he said.

Sauerbrey refused to make any comments following the meeting. In Washington, State Department deputy spokesman Tom Casey said she had called on Syria to work with the Iraqi government, as well as with the UNHCR, to provide protection and assistance for Iraqi refugees.

In response, Syria expressed a willingness to continue hosting the displaced Iraqis while also noting the challenges it poses for the government, Casey said. Sauerbrey met alone with the Syrians because a UNHCR official who was supposed to have attended could not be present, he said.

Last month, the Damascus office of the UNHCR said about 40,000 new Iraqis arrive in Syria each month, almost double the rate from only a few months ago. The refugees have placed a strain on Syria, causing a rise in the prices of housing and goods and overcrowding the country's schools.

The Interior Ministry said in December that Syria has admitted more than 800,000 Iraqis fleeing the raging violence in their country. Unofficial statistics have put the number at about 1.5 million refugees.



Top World News  
Today's Top News  
Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours
主站蜘蛛池模板: 亚洲色四在线视频观看 | 香蕉国产人午夜视频在线观看 | 国产成人黄网在线免 | 欧美伊人久久综合网 | 日韩精品区 | 黑色丝袜三级在线播放 | 日韩丝袜在线观看 | 狠狠av| 日韩欧美在线一区二区三区 | 成人毛片网站 | 欧美视频亚洲视频 | 国产毛片av| 99青青草| 国产成人精品日本亚洲11 | 亚洲激情一区二区 | 精品久久久网站 | 夜色视频网 | 精品视频一区二区三区四区 | 精品一区二区三区久久 | 国产精品久久久久久中文字 | 日韩精品欧美一区二区三区 | 一级黄色绿像片 | 久久香蕉国产线熟妇人妻 | 日韩午夜在线 | 播放一级毛片 | 大香伊蕉国产短视频69 | 一区二区三区日韩视频在线观看 | 九九精品激情在线视频 | 色播视频在线观看 | 黄免费在线观看 | 亚洲一区二区三区免费看 | 国产黑丝在线播放 | 九九精品视频在线播放 | 免费看的毛片 | 国产精品视频网站 | 久久中文字幕视频 | 天天做天天爱夜夜大爽完整 | 成人免费毛片aaaaaa片 | 欧美日韩亚洲综合另类ac | 久久一区精品 | 黄视频免费在线观看 |