Visiting Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan held talks on Saturday with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in an effort to mediate peace between Syria and Israel.
He was expected to deliver a message from Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to Assad on peace negotiation between the two countries, which are still technically at war with each other.
Erdogan also participated in the first Syrian-Turkish Economic Forum which involves about 700 Turkish businessmen.
Before leaving to Damascus earlier in the day, Erdogan told reporters that it was almost obligatory for Turkey to take a mediating role due to the credibility it has.
Assad said in an interview with the Qatari daily Al-Watan published Thursday that Erdogan had informed him a week ago of Israel's readiness to withdraw from the Golan Heights in return for peace.
"What we now need is to find common ground through the Turkish mediator," he said, adding that any negotiations with Israel would be conducted via Ankara.
Last Sunday, Assad confirmed indirect contact with Israel through an anonymous third party to explore the possibility of resuming peace talks.
The Syrian president also denied secret talks with Israel, saying "what Syria could do in this regard will be announced to the public and the only criterion to accept any talks is to be serious and committed to UN resolutions."
Peace talks between Syria and Israel foundered in 2000 due to the dispute over the fate of the strategic Golan Heights, which was occupied by the Jewish state in the 1967 Middle East war.
Source: Xinhua
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