BEIRUT, 16 October 2004 — A top US official said in remarks published yesterday that a Syrian failure to comply with UN demands to pull out its troops from neighboring Lebanon would be a “serious problem.”
“We are determined to seek the implementation of (UN Security Council) Resolution 1559” which calls for the withdrawal of foreign forces from Lebanon, deputy assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs David Satterfield was quoted as saying.
“And Syria’s failure to implement it (resolution 1559) will be a serious problem,” Satterfield was quoted in Lebanese newspapers as telling LBCI satellite television Thursday. “We are now trying to see whether Syria’s cooperation is serious. We will not wait forever for Syria and we want to see it act.” Resolution 1559, co-sponsored by the United States and France and adopted last month, also called for an end to outside interference in Lebanese internal affairs in a clear reference to Syria’s domination of its smaller neighbor.
The day after the resolution was adopted, the Lebanese Parliament amended the constitution to extend by three years the term of office of President Emile Lahoud, a Damascus protege.
“The Lebanese people are capable of taking their own decisions, away from any instructions or threats from abroad, especially when violence has targeted Lebanese officials,” he said.
Meanwhile, Jordan and Syria have reached an agreement on the path of their disputed border, a Jordanian newspaper reported yesterday, but there was no official confirmation.
The two neighbors agreed that the desert border should follow a line demarcated in 1923, the Al-Dustour newspaper reported, quoting “informed sources,” but gave no further information.
The dispute was at the top of the agenda when Jordanian Prime Minister Faisal Al-Fayez visited Damascus in August, saying that Syria held a swathe of Jordanian territory.
