Syria, Israel’s Premier-Elect Eager to Restart Peace Talks

The Syrian president and the Israeli prime minister underscored their desire to restart negotiations between their two countries in separate interviews published Wednesday in a leading Arabic newspaper.

In his first reaction to the election of a new Israeli leader, Syrian President Hafez Assad described Prime Minister-elect Ehud Barak of the Labor Party as “strong and honest,” the Al Hayat newspaper reported.

Barak, in a companion interview in the London-based newspaper, said he sees Syria as the “cornerstone” of peace in the Middle East.

Talks between Israeli and Syrian delegations have not taken place since February 1996.

The election of hard-line Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in May 1996 in effect froze the process, as Syria accused him of trying to ignore what had been agreed with the previous Israeli government.

Assad indicated that he was glad Netanyahu lost the Israeli elections last month, saying that “working with that man was useless.”

Asked about prospects for negotiations with a Barak-led government, Assad replied: “I feel confident now that there is a leader who can deliver if he chooses.

“Clearly, he wants to achieve peace with Syria. He is moving ahead at a careful, studied pace.”

For his part, Barak said he intends to make the “peace of the brave with Syria.”

“The only way for a lasting and comprehensive peace in the Middle East is through an agreement with Syria,” Barak said. “It is the cornerstone for peace.”

In Jerusalem, Barak assured dovish allies Wednesday that he will not change moderate peace policies in his efforts to bring Netanyahu’s Likud Party into a broad coalition government.

Barak has been conducting intensive negotiations with acting Likud head Ariel Sharon, and Sharon has suggested that the prospects of Likud joining a Barak government were good.

David Ziso, a spokesman for Barak, said Likud would have to accept Barak’s coalition guidelines, which call for accelerated negotiations with Syria and the Palestinians on the basis of land-for-security deals.

In the Al Hayat interview, Barak reiterated his pledge to withdraw Israel’s troops from southern Lebanon--where they have occupied a 9-mile-wide strip of territory along Israel’s border since 1985--within a year. Syria, which has about 35,000 troops in Lebanon, is the country’s main power broker.