US is considering a possible change of policy towards Syria in the near future and canceling sanctions against the country but would not include returning the US ambassador to Damascus yet, Senior US officials said.
The discussions were being held over the best way for the US to influence Syria, The Us officials reportedly said, in light of the improved relations with France and the visit of French Prime Minister Nicholas Sarkozy to the country in September.
A US official said there were several encouraging signals on the Syrians' part, including the decision to renew diplomatic ties with Lebanon.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice spoke for 10 minutes with Syrian Foreign Minister Wallid Muallem at a dinner with Arab foreign ministers on September 28. The next day she dispatched her top adviser, Assistant Secretary of State David Welch, for a more lengthy meeting with Muallem.
According to the CNN report, a State Department official as saying that at the Welch-Muallem meeting, the two traded long-standing grievances, and also discussed Washington's support for Israeli-Syrian peace talks, Syria's role in Iraq, Lebanon and the Palestinian territories, and its ties to Iran.
Welch also said Syria should play a more positive role in the Palestinian-Israeli negotiations and stop supporting Palestinian terrorist groups. and he raised the issue of Syria's strategic relationship with Iran.