[Reuters] Alistair Lyon - Saudi Arabia is mending ties with Syria to nudge Damascus toward cooling its alliance with Tehran. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad will visit Riyadh on Wednesday, along with Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak, the state Saudi Press Agency reported. While open to Arab detente, Assad has shown no readiness to sever a bond with non-Arab Iran that has lasted 29 years. "Saudi Arabia's top priority is to confront Iran and its agenda in the Arab world. The Saudis want to weaken Tehran's cards in the Arab world, thus the new approach toward Syria," said an Arab official with close ties to the Saudis.
2009-03-11 06:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive