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AL-ASAD AND SARGSYAN STRESS THE NEED TO ADVANCE SYRIAN-ARMENIAN RELATIONS
Syrian Arab news agency SANA
June 17 - 18 2009
Al-Asad: We are satisfied with steps that were taken to improve
Turkish-Armenian relations; there is no Israel partner for peace.
Yerevan, 17 Jun (SANA) - President Bashar al-Asad and Armenian
President Serzh Sargasyan held talks in the Armenian capital Yerevan
today. Members of the two delegations attended the talks.
At a news conference following the talks, President Al-Asad said he was
glad to visit Armenia, the friendly country, and to meet with President
Sargasyan. He noted that this is the fist visit by a Syrian president
to Armenia after its independence. He said relations between the two
countries, however, should be measured by their historical, popular,
cultural, and emotional dimensions, not their official aspects.
President Al-Asad said the two peoples went through tough historical
stages in the past centuries, which facilitated their meeting and
interaction. He noted that Syrians of Armenian origin have been
living in Syria as Syrian citizens par excellence since they came to
Syria and integrated with its culture, people, and traditions without
abandoning their mother culture, history, or causes. He said those
people created a unique model of communication between world cultures
and further enriched Syria's culture.
President Al-Asad said: The solid foundation of the relations between
the two countries is already there. Through our meetings today and
the subsequent meetings we should accelerate the progress of these
relations. The meeting with President Sargasyan was rich in terms of
the topics we discussed. We dealt with many issues of concern to the
Middle East, Central Asia, and the Caucasus, and we expressed our
deep satisfaction in Syria with the steps that were taken regarding
the Turkish-Armenian relations.
He said Syria is willing to work to advance these relations out of
the strong ties between Syria and Armenia on the one hand and Syria
and Turkey on the other.
He added: I also heard President Sargasyan's views on the thorny issue
of Karabakh. I hope this will not become a chronic issue because, as
we learned in the Middle East, chronic problems become more complex
and more difficult to solve.
He went on: I wanted to hear President Sargasyan's viewpoint before
my first visit to Azerbaijan, which will take place soon, to see how
we can help solve this problem, if such help is needed.
He said he also explained to the Armenian president Syria's views on
the issues of the Middle East, especially the stalled and paralysed
peace process. He stressed that there is no Israel partner for peace
at present. He added: We do not see this partner in the near future,
but this does not mean we will stop talking about or working for peace,
so that when the partner becomes available and ready, the peace plan
will be ready for direct implementation and time will be reduced.
He said the discussions also dealt with the Palestinian situation,
especially the great human suffering of the Palestinian people in
the Gaza Strip as a result of the Israeli siege and the lack of basic
services, which cause daily and continuous deaths among children and
old people.
President Al-Asad thanked President Sargasyan for inviting him to
visit Armenia and wished the Armenian government and friendly people
success and prosperity. [Passage omitted citing remarks by the Armenian
president and reporting President Al-Asad's separate meetings with
the Armenian prime minister and the Armenian parliament speaker to
discuss political issues and economic cooperation]
[In a report the following day, the agency added: "Armenian Prime
Minister Tigran Sargsyan said that President Bashar al-Assad's
visit to Armenia is very important and gives a strong momentum for
developing the relations between Syria and Armenia. In a statement
to the Syrian TV. Satellite Channel aired Wednesday night, Premier
Sargesyan added that "the Syrian-Armenian discussions focused on the
bilateral relations and developing them, particularly the economic
issues and the working plan which should be adopted for expanding
prospects of cooperation between the two countries". It added that
he had stressed the importance of Syrian-Armenian cooperation in the
banking field.]
Syrian Arab news agency SANA
June 17 - 18 2009
Al-Asad: We are satisfied with steps that were taken to improve
Turkish-Armenian relations; there is no Israel partner for peace.
Yerevan, 17 Jun (SANA) - President Bashar al-Asad and Armenian
President Serzh Sargasyan held talks in the Armenian capital Yerevan
today. Members of the two delegations attended the talks.
At a news conference following the talks, President Al-Asad said he was
glad to visit Armenia, the friendly country, and to meet with President
Sargasyan. He noted that this is the fist visit by a Syrian president
to Armenia after its independence. He said relations between the two
countries, however, should be measured by their historical, popular,
cultural, and emotional dimensions, not their official aspects.
President Al-Asad said the two peoples went through tough historical
stages in the past centuries, which facilitated their meeting and
interaction. He noted that Syrians of Armenian origin have been
living in Syria as Syrian citizens par excellence since they came to
Syria and integrated with its culture, people, and traditions without
abandoning their mother culture, history, or causes. He said those
people created a unique model of communication between world cultures
and further enriched Syria's culture.
President Al-Asad said: The solid foundation of the relations between
the two countries is already there. Through our meetings today and
the subsequent meetings we should accelerate the progress of these
relations. The meeting with President Sargasyan was rich in terms of
the topics we discussed. We dealt with many issues of concern to the
Middle East, Central Asia, and the Caucasus, and we expressed our
deep satisfaction in Syria with the steps that were taken regarding
the Turkish-Armenian relations.
He said Syria is willing to work to advance these relations out of
the strong ties between Syria and Armenia on the one hand and Syria
and Turkey on the other.
He added: I also heard President Sargasyan's views on the thorny issue
of Karabakh. I hope this will not become a chronic issue because, as
we learned in the Middle East, chronic problems become more complex
and more difficult to solve.
He went on: I wanted to hear President Sargasyan's viewpoint before
my first visit to Azerbaijan, which will take place soon, to see how
we can help solve this problem, if such help is needed.
He said he also explained to the Armenian president Syria's views on
the issues of the Middle East, especially the stalled and paralysed
peace process. He stressed that there is no Israel partner for peace
at present. He added: We do not see this partner in the near future,
but this does not mean we will stop talking about or working for peace,
so that when the partner becomes available and ready, the peace plan
will be ready for direct implementation and time will be reduced.
He said the discussions also dealt with the Palestinian situation,
especially the great human suffering of the Palestinian people in
the Gaza Strip as a result of the Israeli siege and the lack of basic
services, which cause daily and continuous deaths among children and
old people.
President Al-Asad thanked President Sargasyan for inviting him to
visit Armenia and wished the Armenian government and friendly people
success and prosperity. [Passage omitted citing remarks by the Armenian
president and reporting President Al-Asad's separate meetings with
the Armenian prime minister and the Armenian parliament speaker to
discuss political issues and economic cooperation]
[In a report the following day, the agency added: "Armenian Prime
Minister Tigran Sargsyan said that President Bashar al-Assad's
visit to Armenia is very important and gives a strong momentum for
developing the relations between Syria and Armenia. In a statement
to the Syrian TV. Satellite Channel aired Wednesday night, Premier
Sargesyan added that "the Syrian-Armenian discussions focused on the
bilateral relations and developing them, particularly the economic
issues and the working plan which should be adopted for expanding
prospects of cooperation between the two countries". It added that
he had stressed the importance of Syrian-Armenian cooperation in the
banking field.]