Al-Assad receives a telephone call from Bush
Syria's President Bashar al-Assad on Thursday received a telephone call from the US President George Bush in which the US President expressed his appreciation for the high spirits President al-Assad enjoys, his concerns over the grave situation in the Middle East and the determination of the US to continue involving in work to deal with the situation and to use its influence until just and comprehensive peace is attained in the region. He called on Syria to practice most degrees of self- control.
For his part, President Bashar al-Assad stressed to the US President that the situation in the region is so grave and that Israel has directed a direct blow to the peace process, which has entered the intensive care unit, following the Israeli aggression and is now in a state of coma, especially following contradictory statements made by the UN secretary general Kofi Annan and the official spokesman for the US state department, noting that statements of both men provoke the feelings of Arab citizens everywhere.
President Bashar al-Assad explained to President Bush that he had earlier stressed both to the UN secretary general Kofi Annan and to the US secretary of state that settling standing problems will be only through talking to the Arab street and taking it into account. The main problem lies in these two statements in that they did not give things their due names (i.e. not labeling the Israeli action aggression), noting that Syria has been always committing to peace while what Israel has done against Syria is an aggression by the full meaning of this word. President al-Assad asked the US President to be brave and to call things by their actual names, describing what Israel had done as an aggression.
The President continued:" we fully hold Israel responsible for what is taking place in the region. Committing to peace means to fight any aggression and this means fighting against what Israel is making. We, through our commitment to defending peace, our rights and dignity, preserve our right to repel this aggression the way find it proper." The President also explained that the repeated calls for self- control is no more useful, noting that the reality should be diagnosed so as to reach tangible solutions for debated problems.
President Bush said that what he has heard from President al-Assad will help him to understand the region and the situation in the Middle East and will help the US to carry out her due role to alleviate the tension and halt violence.
