LONDON, June 6 (JTA) — Syrian President Hafez Assad is about to embark on direct peace talks with Israel without prior consultation with the Palestinians, according to sources in Damascus. The sources’ comments come amid reports in Israel that Prime Minister-elect Ehud Barak has devised a plan for concluding a peace agreement with Syria that involves Israel’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon and the Golan Heights in exchange for security arrangements with Damascus. Assad, who recently signaled to Barak that he is willing to be “flexible” in negotiations, has always insisted that talks with Israel must take place only in close coordination with other Arab states. But the Saudi-owned daily Asharq al-Awsat reported over the weekend that Assad told visiting Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah that Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat had been the first to break ranks – – and, in the process, had weakened Syria’s negotiating posture. Syria, he said, should not now be blamed for pursuing its own interests in the peace process. The London-based daily quoted an informed source in Damascus as saying, “What concerns Syria now are its policies, its interests and the Syrian-Lebanese track.” The source pointed out that Syria was the first to agree to attend the 1991 Madrid peace conference “within the framework of a joint Arab position.” However, the source added, Damascus “was subsequently surprised” by the series of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations that began in 1993, “from which Syria was totally excluded.” The Saudi daily also indicated that relations between Assad and Arafat remain tense. It reported that the Syrian leader responded coolly to an Arafat initiative to convene a five-way summit — involving Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt and the Palestinians — to coordinate their positions on the peace process in the wake of Barak’s recent election victory. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who was working to facilitate the summit, told the state-owned Egyptian newspaper Al Ahram last Friday that he had all but abandoned the initiative “because there is a Palestinian-Syrian rift.” Arafat is said to be apprehensive that Barak may strike a deal with Syria that will enable him to withdraw Israeli forces from southern Lebanon, leaving the Palestinians to face Israel alone in the final-status negotiations. Abdullah reportedly expressed full support for Damascus until it recovers “every inch” of the Golan, but it was unclear whether he offered to mediate between Assad and Arafat, as some Arab papers have suggested. Meanwhile, the senior correspondent for the Israeli daily Ma’ariv, Dan Caspit, reported over the weekend that Barak has a developed package of security arrangements and timetables for concluding a settlement with Syria and Lebanon. Under the plan, Israel and Syria would sign a declaration of principles that includes an Israeli acknowledgment of Syria’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights. The declaration, writes Caspit, will spell out Israel’s willingness to return the Golan to Syria, subject to detailed and verifiable security arrangements. The declaration would not only trigger the start of peace talks between Syria and Israel, but also the start of Israel’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon. The withdrawal from the security zone would be undertaken in cooperation with the Lebanese army and international forces, which will assume responsibility for security in the area. According to Caspit, Barak envisages an Israeli withdrawal from the Golan in two stages: The plateau, the largest part of the Golan, would be returned in the first phase; the strategically sensitive cliff area would be handed back in the second stage, after a period of some five years. However, Barak is reportedly adamant that the Syrians do not get all of the Golan to the shores of the Sea of Galilee. Instead, Barak will propose the creation of a narrow strip about 5 miles wide along the eastern bank of the sea, which will remain demilitarized and depopulated for a period of about 50 years. Barak will seek to leave two or three Israeli-manned early-warning stations on the Golan and make provision for Israeli and Syrian officers to conduct joint patrols to verify compliance with the terms of the agreement. In addition, Syria will agree to surprise inspections of the evacuated territory, according to the Ma’ariv report. The guiding principle of Israel’s security requirements will be that the demilitarized area of the Golan will be “transparent” to Israeli eyes in order to preclude the possibility of Syria using the Golan as a platform for a surprise attack on Israel. Barak expects the economic cost of the package, which Caspit describes as “astronomical,” to be assumed by Washington. He is reportedly counting on Israel getting a handsome compensation package from the United States, in addition to substantial economic aid to transfer bases from the Golan and set up sophisticated early-warning stations. He will also seek U.S. surveillance planes, access to satellite intelligence and other still-unspecified security measures from the United States.
Recommended from JTA
