Sleiman urges world to open up to Syria

President Michel Sleiman on Wednesday urged the international community to open up to Syria because of its key role in the region.

"The international community must open up to Syria, following the example set by France, because Syria plays a fundamental role at the regional level," Sleiman said in a statement released by the presidential palace.

He made his remarks at a meeting with an American delegation led by Deputy Assistant to the Undersecretary of State for Near East Affairs David Hale.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy is set to visit Damascus on September 3 and 4 in the wake of the announcement by Syria and Lebanon that they will establish diplomatic relations for the first time.

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Hopes high for Lebanon-Syria ties on eve of Moallem's visit to Beirut

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem is to visit Beirut on Monday a week after Lebanon and Syria agreed to establish diplomatic relations between the adjoining nations.

Moallem is to deliver an invitation to Lebanese President Michel Sleiman from his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad to visit Damascus – a trip the Lebanese press said would take place within a week or 10 days.

Moallem last visited Beirut on May 25 to attend the election of Sleiman.

Sleiman and Assad met last weekend at the sidelines of the Mediterranean Union summit in Paris and reportedly agreed on establishing diplomatic ties for the first time since their independence from French colonial rule more than 60 years ago.

"It is expected that the question of diplomatic relations will be raised during the visit. We hope it will mark a new step in Syrian-Lebanese ties," said Syria's Al-Watan newspaper, which is close to the government.

It added that during his visit, Moallem would discuss "ways of improving relations given the favorable circumstances with the election of a consensus president in Lebanon and the formation of a national unity government."

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Bush, Sarkozy pressure Syria over Lebanon

The United States and France on Saturday jointly called on Syria to establish "friendly" diplomatic ties with Lebanon.

A joint statement following talks in Paris between President George W. Bush and President Nicolas Sarkozy called on the two countries to "quickly establish full diplomatic relations" based on "respect, equality, security and sovereignty."

Syria, the former power broker in Lebanon, withdrew its troops in 2005 in the aftermath of the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, ending a military presence of nearly three decades.

The absence of formal diplomatic relations between Lebanon and Syria is seen by some Lebanese as a sign of Syrian designs on their country.

The United States and France also called for "supporting the international investigation and creation of a special tribunal" to try the perpetrators of Hariri's assassination.

Syrian President Bashar alAssad earlier this month said Damascus was ready to open an embassy in Lebanon once a unity government is formed and develops good relations with Syria.

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United States presses International Atomic Energy Agency to search for nuclear sites in Syria

The United States is pressing UN inspectors to broaden a search for secret nuclear sites in Syria to check if it has other hidden facilities beyond an alleged reactor destroyed by Israel, The Washington Post reported Thursday.

US officials have given information on three suspect sites to the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency, which is negotiating with Syria for permission to conduct inspections in the country, the Post said, citing US government officials and Western diplomats.

US officials want to know if the suspect sites were support facilities for the alleged Al-Kibar reactor, which Washington says was built with North Korean help, the daily said.

Officials declined to describe the suspect sites or discuss how they were identified, the newspaper said.

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