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US State Department lifts travel warning for Syria

20 February 2010 19:40 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA. The U.S. has lifted an advisory warning American travelers of security concerns in Syria, officials said Saturday, as Washington tries to boost ties with a country seen as key to peace in the region, APA reports citing â€œAssociated Press.â€

However, Syria remains on a U.S. list of countries supporting terrorism, a designation made in 1979 because of suspicions that Syria collaborates with Iran in supplying munitions to radical Islamist groups for use against Israel.

The country also remains under U.S. sanctions, which President Barack Obama renewed in May. First imposed by former President George W. Bush, the sanctions cite Syrian support for terrorism, its pursuit of weapons of mass destruction and other activities including efforts to undermine U.S. operations in Iraq.

Earlier this week, the International Atomic Energy Agency said that uranium particles found at a Syrian desert facility bombed three years ago by Israel suggest possible covert nuclear activity at the site.

That view added weight to Western concerns that the site was a nearly finished reactor with the ability to produce weapons-grade plutonium. The IAEA also called on Damascus to give inspectors unrestrained access to sites beyond those covered by the nonproliferation agreement.

On Saturday, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem dismissed the new IAEA report, and reiterated Damascus’ refusal to allow inspectors unfettered access to check out possible covert sites. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said the U.S. remained concerned about Syria’s nuclear activity but stood by a decision to nominate a career diplomat to become the first U.S. ambassador to Damascus since 2005.

"We are going to have an ambassador there who will engage Syria on the full range of issues, those areas where we think there’s opportunity for cooperation and those areas where we have concerns about Syria’s ongoing activity," he told reporters Friday in Washington.

Washington’s recent overtures to Syria coincide with rising administration disagreement with Iran and a U.S. effort to unite the Arab world in opposition to the regime in Tehran.

Obama has made changing America’s image in the Middle East a priority of his first year and announced this week plans to name a new ambassador. Washington withdrew its last ambassador following the assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, which many blamed on Syria. Syria has denied involvement.