Albright says Syrian power transition 'appears to be smooth'

Albright

June 12, 2000
Web posted at: 3:24 p.m. EDT (1924 GMT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- As she prepared to depart for Damascus to attend the funeral of Syrian President Hafez Assad, U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said Monday the transition of power "appears to be smooth and we hope it will continue in that vein."

Albright said she expected to meet in Damascus with Bashar Assad, the 34-year-old son of the president and the heir apparent.

The secretary told reporters that she hoped Bashar, an ophthalmologist who turned to politics after his older brother Basil died in a car wreck in 1994, would follow his father into the Mideast peace process and would open his tightly controlled country to more outside interests.

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Albright discusses her plans to go to Damascus for the funeral of President Hafez Assad 1.7MB/40 sec. AIFF or WAV sound

"It's important for Dr. Assad to take on the mantle and for the transition process to be pursued," she said. "I will repeat again to whomever I meet that the door is open, and we will be exploring."

Talks between Syria and Israel broke down earlier this year over Syria's insistence on the return of all lands Israel took during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, while Israel wants to keep some former Syrian territory as a buffer.

"President Assad played a critical role in the Middle East," Albright said. "His passing doesn't alter the compelling logic for all parties to pursue a comprehensive peace nor America's willingness to work with all parties to achieve that goal."

Albright dismissed a question about the propriety of a high-level U.S. representative attending the funeral of the leader of a country accused by the State Department of sponsoring terrorism.

"I think that it's totally appropriate that we pay our respects to a historic figure, and that we express our condolences to the people of Syria," she said. "There is no question that we need to work with the Syrian leadership in order to accomplish a comprehensive peace."

Albright noted that U.S. secretaries of state have a long history of visiting Syria in the pursuit of peace.

Asked if she would send an anti-terrorism message to the Syrian leadership, she said, "I do that whenever I can. I'm not sure, when I'm offering condolences ... that that is exactly the time to have that discussion."

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National Information Center - Syria
Syrian Embassy
ArabNet -- Syria, Government

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