Assad: Lebanon will lose if tribunal is politicized, no peace with "Israel" before resolving Palestinian cause

Source: Nowlebanon.com, 9-3-2009

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told United Arab Emirates newspaper Al-Khaleej on Monday that Lebanon would be the first one to pay the price if the Special Tribunal on the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was politicized.

He said he hoped the tribunal would not be politicized but noted that "there are no guarantees."
"The UN and Security Council are not carrying out their duties properly. How are we supposed to expect a UN-affiliated organization to be objective?" he asked.

He also said that the situation in Lebanon would deteriorate in the absence of a consensus, rather than the absence of the upcoming parliamentary elections, "because only consensus could ensure stability" in Lebanon.

Reuters reported that Assad told the paper that a peace deal with "Israel" was possible, but that normal relations would only be possible if "Israel" ended its conflict with the Palestinians.

"There will perhaps be an embassy and formalities, but if they want peace then it has to be comprehensive. We give them the choice between a comprehensive peace and a peace agreement that does not have any real value on the ground," Assad said.

"There is a difference between a peace agreement and peace itself. A peace agreement is a piece of paper you sign," he told the paper, adding that it excluded the normalization of relations between the two countries.

Assad said the Syrians would not accept a peace treaty with "Israel", "especially since there are half a million Palestinians in our country whose position remains unresolved. It is impossible under these terms to have peace in the natural sense."

Assad said it was in the Palestinians' interests to coordinate with Damascus over its peace talks with "Israel" to stop the zionist state from putting off a solution to the Palestinians living outside their homeland.

"We believe that if "Israel" signs a peace agreement with Syria, "Israel" will ignore the Palestinian question," he explained.
Egypt was the first Arab country to sign a peace treaty with "Israel", but it was often described as "a cold peace" since relations did not extend beyond official government contacts.