Syria not learnt lessons of Iraq: US [View All]

[floda]

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AP): A top American official on Friday accused Syria, which has had US sanctions imposed against it, of failing to learn from the lessons in Iraq and become a positive player in the Middle East. Richard Armitage, the US deputy secretary of state, said the Bush administration is studying Damascus' response to sanctions imposed in May, and warned that stricter sanctions could follow. "We have the ability to go to stage two, which will be a more draconian sanctions regime," Armitage said in an exclusive interview with the Lebanese Al Hayat-LBC satellite station. "But that decision hasn't been made."

The United States imposed trade sanctions on Syria through the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act on grounds that the Arab state was allegedly supporting terrorism. Washington also claims Syria is undermining US-led coalition efforts to stabilize neighboring Iraq and pursuing weapons of mass destruction, charges that Syria denies. The sanctions law allows Washington to impose economic and diplomatic sanctions if Damascus does not comply. Armitage said Friday that Syria hasn't "made any fundamental decisions to (becoming) a much more positive player in the region."




"I don't think they fully learnt the lessons of Iraq and the termination of that Baathist player, so I think they still have some internal discussions ... to go through," he said without elaborating. The ruling Baath Party in Syria, which strongly opposed the US-led war on Iraq, broke ranks with the Iraqi Baath Party in 1966 amid political infighting over party principles and issues of Arab unity. Armitage also urged Syria to withdraw its troops from neighboring Lebanon, where thousands of Syrian soldiers have been based since Lebanon's 1975-90 civil war. "The Lebanese civil war has been over for well over a decade and it seems to me - this is our strong view - that it's time for Lebanese forces to take charge of their entire country and Syrian forces to move themselves back to Syria," he said. Syria is Lebanon's main power broker and currently has 20,000 soldiers in Lebanon.



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