Egyptian Ambassador: President Assad ready to achieve comprehensive peace

The Egyptian ambassador to Israel, Muhammad Basyouni, has said that Syrian President Hafez al-Assad is ready to achieve a just and comprehensive peace in the region, under the condition that a just peace is to be fair for all sides and ensure security for all sides.

Basyouni added, replying to a question asked by Israel Radio on Friday if President al-Assad is ready to sit with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak after a statement made by Barak that if he sat with President al-Assad he would be able to reach an agreement, that the implementation process is not necessary to start with sitting together on the level of the summit, in the first place.

"This should be preceded by other preliminary steps in order to have a good preparation for a bilateral summit whose results will be positive," Basyouni said, adding, "The most important is not the summit in itself, rather reaching peace agreements."

Basyouni said, "I am confident that the Syrian and Israeli sides have the real desire to reach an agreement and to end the struggle which have lasted more than 100 years."