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US Congress delegation in Syria

23 February 2011 02:39 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has met a US Congress delegation headed by Senator Richard Shelby in Damascus for talks on the latest developments in the Middle East, APA reports quoting Press TV.

During the talks, Assad urged the US to play a positive role in achieving peace and stability in the region, Press TV correspondent in Damascus Khaldoun al-Aridi reported.

The Syrian president also warned Arab governments to heed the demands of their people and added that "policy making cannot be drawn in isolation from the peoples".

Washington says it is committed to peace in the region. However, it recently vetoed a UN Security Council resolution which condemned the Israeli settlement construction on Palestinian land.

Robert Ford arrived in Syria in January to serve as the first US ambassador to Damascus in six years. However, the prospect for closer ties remains dim as Washington still pursues the same policies in the region as in the past.

The American congressmenâ€™s visit is part of a regional tour. Several US officials have visited Damascus recently.

The stated aim of the trips has often been to revive direct negotiations between Tel Aviv and the Palestinian Authority, but so far such moves have yielded no solid results.