A four-way summit including Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was held at the People's Palace in Damascus on Thursday morning.
Following the summit, Assad said indirect peace talks between Israel and Syria have been postponed due to the resignation of a senior Israeli mediator. Turkey has been mediating the talks between the two nations.
Al-Assad said on Thursday: "There was supposed to be a fifth round [of talks], meant to be crucial, I think yesterday. "The resignation of the chief Israeli negotiator led to the postponement of this round, which would have defined the course of these negotiations."
Syria has handed proposals for peace with Israel over to Turkish mediators and is waiting Israel's answer, the Syrian leader said. According to him, the future of negotiations rests on who replaces Ehud Olmert as prime minister in Israel and whether that leader is committed to pursuing peace with Syria.
© 2008 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
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