Peres: Syria Must Give Up Lebanon Bases if it Wants Peace
Israeli President Shimon Peres said Tuesday that making peace with Syria depends on whether Damascus is prepared to rein in Hizbullah in Lebanon.
Peres said in a BBC radio interview aired Tuesday that Syria cannot expect Israel to withdraw from the Golan Heights while Iran furthers its influence in Lebanon with the help of Syria. Israel is not prepared to tolerate an Iranian presence on its border, Peres said.
He was apparently referring to Hizbullah, the Iranian-and Syrian-backed group which fought Israeli forces in the 2006 war.
"If Syria will understand that they can”t have the Golan Heights and keep Lebanon as a base for the Iranians, then the decision will be clear. But if she wants the Golan Heights back and keeps her bases in Lebanon which are really controlled and financed by the Iranians no Israeli will agree to have Iranians on our borders," Peres said.
Syria has held indirect talks with Israel through Turkish mediation in recent months. Syrian officials have in the past rejected Israeli demands that Damascus drop its support for Hizbullah and give up its alliance with Iran as part of a peace deal.
Syria has insisted on the full return of the Golan Heights, captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war.
Peres is in London through Friday for a series of engagements including talks with Prime Minister Gordon Brown.