Assad Says Carries No Nuclear Notice

Source: Alalam.ir, 4-8-2008
TEHRAN--Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said he was not mediating or bringing a message from the West to Iran over its nuclear program.
Assad told a joint news conference with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Tehran on Sunday that he was "not a mediator and not an envoy and not carrying a message from any Western official."
"I am not a mediator or an envoy or carrying any message from any Western official. Our visit to Iran does not come within the framework of the nuclear issue. The nuclear issue is a component of this visit, and has always been part of discussions with any Iranian official over the past years," he said.
However, Assad said that during his visit to France in July he was asked, "in view of the strong friendship between Syria and Iran", to play a role in resolving the nuclear issue.
"This visit was planned regardless of my visit to France, and regardless of the recent developments on the nuclear issue. So it is no different from previous visits, except with regard to current developments on matters we raised, such as Lebanon, Palestine and Iraq. However, we were asked in France, in view of the strong friendship between Syria and Iran, to play a role in resolving this (nuclear) issue, without defining the nature of that role."
The Syrian president said he had told French officials that Syria's position in the dispute was based on international law and the right of Iran and any country to use peaceful nuclear energy.
For his part, the Iranian president reiterated the Islamic republic's seriousness to continue nuclear talks.
"We are serious in negotiations and ready for talks which are based on principals and rules and would lead to practical results", president Ahmadinejad said.
"We submitted a proposed package to Western countries and they submitted their own package of proposals to us," Ahmadinejad added.
Iranian officials have previously said they are awaiting a reply from the six powers -- the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China -- to the Iranian ideas.
A joint statement by Assad and Ahmadinejad on Sunday said Syria and Iran discussed a range of regional issues such as the situation in Lebanon and Iraq, as well as other topics like the nuclear dossier.