Western sources comment on Baker's visit to Damascus

The Lebanese daily al-Nahar on Monday reported that Western sources in Damascus said that former US Secretary of State James Baker and former US ambassador to Damascus Edward Djerjian, who had met with President Hafez al-Assad, are "making personal efforts for mediation between Syria and Israel."

The Western sources stated that Baker and Djerjian have built their efforts on their knowledge of the two sides and the new opportunity for attaining peace presented by the election of leader of the Israeli Labor Party as Israel's prime minister.

The sources continued that the US administration did not assign the two men this task, which is "mere personal efforts" due to their being close to Syria, which respects Baker and takes into account the Syrian - Armenian origin of Edward Djerjian.

The paper added that the two former US officials had denied following their meeting with Farouk al-Sharaa to have had a mission between Damascus and Tel Aviv.

They indicated that they do not carry a proposal from Israel as reported in certain Arab dailies, which spoke of a serious proposal from Israeli Prime Minister-elect Ehud Barak concerning the withdrawal from the Golan.