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Entries in European Union (2)

Thursday
Oct292009

Israel and Syria: Can Turkey Be a Mediator?

Israel-Palestine: Peres “Hamas Used Children as Human Shields”
Israel’s Growing Problem: Will Its Ministers Be Arrested?
Palestine: Abbas Resign? It’s a Bluff


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israel_syria_080403_mnOn earlier Wednesday, during a meeting with Croatian President Stipe Mesic, Syrian president Bashar Assad called on European Union countries to facilitate peace talks with Israel through Turkey's mediation:
As far as it concerns us in Syria, we have national support to continue talks with Israel. We call on European countries to also give their contribution, to help Turkey [and] also us to be able to resume from where we have stopped.

With Israeli-Turkish relations have been damaged following the Davos crisis in January, Israeli leaders reiterated that they are not seeking Turkey's mediation role yet are willing to discuss peace with Syria as long as there is no pre-conditions.

Meanwhile, Turkish-Syrian relations are strengthening. Both countries held a military drill in April. Syrian Defense Minister Ali Habib Mahmud said on 14 October that his country is to stage a second round of joint military exercises with Turkey. Turkey and Syria also signed political and economic agreements in September. Mutual visa requirements and taxes on trailer trucks operating between the two countries were lifted and "a strategic cooperation assembly" was established.

Finally, it seems that Ankara has got what it desired from Damascus: insistence on Turkey's mediation in the peace process. On 20 October 20, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan reportedly stressed that Syria would accept only their country as a mediator in peace talks with Israel.

On Wednesday, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak stated that Syria is pivotal in the path toward regional peace. Without mentioning Turkey, he said, "Peace with Syria is a major building block of any stable regional agreement. Israel has sought in the past, and will continue to seek ways to promote peace with Syria." However, he also put Tel Aviv's conditions: "Responsible behavior on behalf of the Syrians, as well as Hezbollah, is required in order to prevent the dangers of conflict in the region."

So the Israel-Syria talks won't be occurring soon. Will that matter for Turkey? Possibly not in the short-term: it is more than satisfied with how delays as well as progress strengthen its role as a participant in regional politics.
Friday
Oct092009

Middle East: European Union Partnership Deal With Syria?

Israel-Palestine: Mixed Reception for US Envoy Mitchell in Tel Aviv
Israel FM Lieberman: Distance from US, No Agreement with Palestine
Israel-Palestine: Sacrificing the Goldstone Report to the War of Politics

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EU_Syria_Flag It looks like the 30 August trip of Javier Solana, the head of the European Union's foreign policy, to Syria has had a significant and controversial outcome. An Israeli diplomatic source claims the EU will sign a partnership deal with Syria later this month:
Even if this deal is far from what Israel has with the European Union, this step is not in line with the European Union's policy on the subject of human rights."

This is a double message - with a country like Syria they further relations, but with Israel they freeze the uprgrade [referring to the freezing of a planned upgrade of relations between Israel and the EU earlier this year].