Assad: Aoun is no Longer Seeking Revenge but is Defending Syria

Syrian President Bashar al Assad has said that in spite of the past confrontations between Gen. Michel Aoun and Syria, the former military commander is no longer seeking revenge but to the contrary is defending Damascus. In a lengthy two-page interview with the London-based al Hayat newspaper published Monday, Assad said that Syria enjoys a better relationship with Aoun than with the anti-Syrian parliamentary majority. "I don't know him personally but if we carry out a logical comparison, those who used to call themselves Damascus' allies are the ones plotting against Syria," Assad said. "As for Gen. Michel Aoun, our relationship with him was bad and at times confrontational. However, he is not seeking revenge or attempting to harm Syria. On the contrary, he is defending it and this is something we cannot deny," he added. Aoun, a former army commander, waged a "War of Liberation" against Syria's troops in Lebanon in 1989. The battles, that killed and wounded thousands of Lebanese civilians, ended when Syrian forces defeated Aoun in Oct. 1990 forcing him to seek exile in France. After the Feb. 14, 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, Syria came under intense international pressure and pulled its forces out of Lebanon. Aoun, whose followers were major participants in the mass protests that followed Hariri's murder, returned to Lebanon in May, a few weeks after the Syrian withdrawal. After his return, Aoun broke with the anti-Syrian parliamentary majority and signed a cooperation agreement with the Syrian-backed Hizbullah. His tone towards Damascus has been more conciliatory and he has on several occasions expressed willingness to visit the Syrian capital if political leaders meeting at national reconciliation talks asked him to do so. Asked if the "doors of Damascus" were open for Aoun, Assad replied: "Yes, of course." However, he said that his country would wait until the end of the dialogue meetings in Lebanon before taking such a move so as not to be accused of interfering in internal Lebanese affairs. Political leaders gathered at the reconciliation talks in Beirut delegated Prime Minister Fouad Saniora in April with the task of visiting Damascus to discuss establishing diplomatic ties with Syria and delineating the common border. The meeting has so far failed to take place with both sides blaming each other. Damascus says Saniora has missed his chance, while Beirut argues that the invitation was not serious and did not include the proper protocol. Assad said Damascus has invited the Premier twice. The first time the invitation was extended by him personally at the Arab Summit in Khartoum in March and the second time through Speaker Nabih Berri when he visited Syria in May. "However, Saniora did not come. What can Syria do other than that?" Assad said. Relations between Syria and Lebanon have been at their worst since the Hariri assassination that was blamed on Damascus. Parliamentary elections held in May and June free of Syrian influence brought to power an anti-Syrian legislative majority headed by Saad Hariri, who took over his father's political mantle after his death. Assad said that his country would welcome a visit by Hariri if he became the next prime minister. "We have already been asked if we would welcome a visit by Saad Hariri and we said of course. This is no problem for us," he said.

Beirut, Updated 28 Jun 06, 09:08