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Argentina, Brazil, Spain leaders offer to mediate in Middle East conflict

Wednesday, July 7th 2010 - 06:19 UTC
Full article 7 comments
Syrian president Bashar al-Assad with Rodriguez Zapatero Syrian president Bashar al-Assad with Rodriguez Zapatero

The European Union and Latinamerica could play a crucial role in helping solve the Middle East conflict said Syrian president Bashar al-Assad following an offer from Spanish president Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero to mediate in a Damascus-Israel dialogue.

Both Europe and Latin America “can play that role” as intermediates between Palestinians and Israelis, underlined the Syrian leader who concluded this week in Madrid an international tour of Latinamerica that took him to Cuba, Venezuela, Brazil and Argentina.

Both regions together with United States, could help “to re-launch dialogue” and thus avoid the return of a situation, 19 years ago, when the Peace Conference in Madrid. At the time there was an attempt to open a Middle East negotiation process with international sponsoring.

Currently, warned al-Assad “the chances for peace are limited and those for war are much larger”.

During his long tour of Latinamerica and Spain the Syrian president received from Spanish, Argentine and Brazilian leaders a clear and direct interest in having closer links with Damascus as well as cooperating in finding a solution to the Arab-Israel conflict.

Argentina, Brazil and Venezuela have strong, rich and influential Syrian communities and al-Assad invited them to invest in their ancestors’ home country.

The Syrian president admitted to his Spanish counterpart Rodríguez Zapatero that it will be difficult for Turkey to continue with its “mediation efforts” following the death of nine Turkish citizens to the hands of Israeli commandos involved in the assault of the so called “peace flotilla” which last May was transporting humanitarian aid to Palestinians in the Gaza strip.

However such an adverse situation “could facilitate a greater participation from other international players such as the EU or Latinamerica” said al-Assad.
Last July 2 Argentine president Cristina Kirchner offered Bashar al-Assad the willingness of Argentina to play a “protagonist role” in Middle East.

“Middle East peace is a central issue for world peace and security”, Mrs Kirchner told the Syrian leader during their meeting at Government House in Buenos Aires.

Previously Brazilian president Lula da Silva renewed his mediation efforts in Middle East arguing that “the conflict transcends regional dimensions” and solving it “is a responsibility of all of us”.
 

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  • Hoytred

    What a crock of cr*p .... the lightweights want to get involved when the heavyweights cannot achieve anything ... lol

    Jul 07th, 2010 - 06:41 am 0
  • Paul

    ..Argentina to play a “protagonist role” in Middle East.. What?! Ha ha how? They'll have as much impact if the Canary Islands did it.

    Anything to keep eyes away from problems at home.

    Jul 07th, 2010 - 10:23 am 0
  • avargas2001

    Yes Argentina should ask the jews to get out of Palestine and blockade Israel untill the jews stop murder inocent people, maybe we can ship a nuke to Palestine to level up with Israel's US made nukes.

    Jul 07th, 2010 - 05:39 pm 0
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