U.S. urges Syria to alienate Iran, engage Israel

WASHINGTON, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- As a further gesture against Tehran over its nuclear ambition, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Wednesday urged Syria to "move away" from Iran and resume peace talks with Israel.

The United States has been urging Damascus to "begin to move away from the relationship with Iran," Secretary Clinton said at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, which is focused on the Obama administration's foreign policy.

The Syrian government should also offer "greater cooperation" with Iraq, end interference in Lebanon and resume peace talks with Israel, said Clinton, who told lawmakers that the administration has no choice but to exert sanctions on Iran.

Secretary Clinton is the most senior U.S. official unambiguously asking Damascus to alienate Iran. The Obama administration has been trying to warm the U.S.-Syria relationship up by returning its ambassador to Damascus as soon as possible.

In the past some 20 years, Syria and Iran, both listed by Washington as "State Sponsors of Terrorism," have been widely believed as a strong strategic alliance in the Middle East although one is secular regime and the other is religious.

The Bush administration froze diplomatic relations with Syria by recalling its ambassador following the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Washington blamed it on Syria while Damascus denied the accusation.

The Obama administration, since it took office in January, 2009, has been encouraging Syria to play a positive role in the Middle East affairs ranging from Iran's nuclear stalemate, Lebanon's stability, Iraq's security to the peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.