Assad, who made a comeback on the international stage on Saturday with a visit to France, asked French President Nicolas Sarkozy to assist in direct peace negotiations between Syria and Israel, alongside the United States. Assad, in his talks with Sarkozy, signalled his willingness for face-to-face talks with Israel, on the eve of a major EU-Mediterranean summit to be attended by more than 40 foreign leaders. Sarkozy has invited leaders from 44 countries, including Arab nations and Israel, for the founding summit of the union aimed at boosting cooperation between EU and Mediterranean rim states. In a joint Franco-Syrian statement following the meeting, Sarkozy also said he welcomed Assad's determination to establish diplomatic relations with neighboring Lebanon. “The Syrian president has expressed his wish that France, together with the United States of America, fully contributes to a future peace agreement between Syria and Israel, both to the direct peace talks and to the implementation of the peace agreement,” the statement said. The statement added that Sarkozy would visit Syria by mid-September to relaunch relations between Paris and Damascus, which have been tense since the assassination of former Lebanese prime pinister Rafik Al-Hariri in 2005. Assad met Lebanese President Michel Suleiman for the first time on Saturday as well as the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, who helped broker a power-sharing deal among Lebanon's pro-Western and pro-Syrian factions in May. Suleiman told reporters on Saturday that relations with neighboring Syria were good and that his country would like to open a diplomatic mission in Damascus. “We too obviously want an exchange of ambassadors and diplomatic relations with Syria,” he said after meeting Sarkozy. The establishment of embassies would amount to a Syrian recognition of Lebanon's sovereignty. The two countries have not exchanged ambassadors since Lebanon's independence since 1943. France and many other Western nations have shunned Syria in recent years. Despite concerns over Syria's rights record, France sees Assad's willingness to take part in the new Mediterranean forum as a sign that Damascus is seeking a more constructive role in the Middle East.
