Syrian military buildup worries Israel
By BARRY SCHWEID -- AP Diplomatic Writer
Published: May 2, 2007
Last Modified: May 2, 2007 at 11:20 AM
WASHINGTON (AP) Faced with the biggest military buildup by Syria along its border since the 1973 Middle East war, Israel is privately reassuring its Arab neighbor that it does not seek a confrontation, Israeli Ambassador Sallai Meridor said Wednesday.
"We use every effort to send messages to Syria we have no offensive intention," Meridor said.
Mostly steering clear of the political turmoil at home, which he said was not appropriate for him to discuss publicly, Meridor nonetheless said Israel would continue "to do everything humanly possible to enhance peace" opportunities with the Palestinians.
"We are trying to create opportunities for the Palestinians to make peace," he said.
Offering to evacuate thousands of Jewish settlers on the West Bank and make other concessions, Meridor said: "I do not know a country in the world which would risk as much" for peace.
"We are not going to give up the slightest opportunity to move forward," Meridor said at a luncheon sponsored by The Israel Project, a private group. However, he gave no indication Israel would alter its policy of not dealing with Hamas, which plays a dominant role in the Palestinian government and is considered a terror group by the United States and Israel.
At home, Israel's foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, called on Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to step down and said she would seek to replace him after a harsh report criticizing his handling of the war last summer with Hezbollah militia in Lebanon.
Meridor said he had not briefed Bush administration officials or had any meetings with them about the political situation. And he declined to discuss it.
But the ambassador dwelled on what he called a major buildup of Syrian missiles that could reach any part of Israel "and create major damage" and a "preparedness" along the border "that we have not seen since 1973."
Meridor said Russia was contributing to Syria's arsenal by providing the country with missiles.
Syria lost the strategic Golan Heights to Israel in the 1967 Mideast war and failed to recover the territory in a war in 1973 in which Egypt and Syria fought against Israel again.
Israel annexed the territory in 1981 and about 8,000 Israelis live there.
U.S.-assisted negotiations with Israel and Syria have failed to resolve the dispute on a land-for-peace basis. The most recent peace conference broke down in 2000.
Syrian military buildup worries Israel 
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