U.S. Welcomes Assad”s Move But Says “There”s Still Outstanding Work to Be Done”
The United States has welcomed Syrian President Bashar Assad”s decree to set up diplomatic ties with Lebanon and urged Damascus to demarcate the border between the two neighbors.
It is a positive step toward Syria recognizing its full responsibilities in terms of implementing Security Council resolutions and other international agreements," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Tuesday.
"Now, there are other aspects of this, and that includes fully defining the border between Syria and Lebanon. So there”s still outstanding work to be done. And also behavior beyond just setting up these embassies and establishing diplomatic relations also matters," he added.
Asked if he heard anything back from the Syrians about how they handled the case of two U.S. journalists, McCormack said: "I”m not aware of anything new."
The journalists who were detained in Syria after going missing in Lebanon said last week that they had been kidnapped and smuggled across the border against their will.