SYRIA

Turkey/Syria Tension:

Turkish and Syrian security official agreed to end their dispute. After Turkey threatened to use force after accusing Damascus of aiding Kurdish rebels

Russian Arms To Syria

Russia is keen to update Syria's weapons, according to Moscow's ambassador in DamascusViktor Gogitidze.

Ina news conference on 10 June he confirmed that an agreement was reached to resolve the issue of Syria's US$11.2 billion debt inherited from the USSR. The Syrian President Haze Al-Assad is to visit Moscow in October to discuss ways of enhancing economic and political ties.
Ambassador Gogitidze said bilateral ties had started to improve in all sectors including co-operation in military and economic fields.

He also confirmed the reports that Russian and Syrian troops had conducted joint military exercises in Russia last year and that Russian military experts were still working in Syria. Despite the ambassador's reluctance to confirm reports in the Russian media of new arms sales to Syria including anti-tank systems and an agreement on future sales of S-300 missiles, Israeli and American reports insist that the deal was going ahead.
President Hafez Assad's visit to France

Check also: relatedreports.htm Syria-Israel.htm Syria.htm

The Assads

Lieutenant-Colonel Bashar Al-Assad, President Assad's son is being groomed succeeded his father. His older brother who was prepared for the role died in a car accident in 1994. Bashar is reported to continue to take an increasing role in Syrian State affairs. He accompanied Defence Minister Lieutenant-General Mustafa Talas on the final stages of military manoeuvres this week. Speculation continues that Bashar is being groomed to succeed his father.

Meanwhile the president continue to display a show of strength, as the Syrian armed forces were conducting military manoeuvres for the second time in less than a month on the orders of President Assad, officials were reported saying on 7 June. Riffat al-Assad, the former deputy and the alienated brother of the President is living in exile in Paris, he refuses to talk to the media or give interviews. He is not even involved in his son's (Dr Sumar el-Assad) ambitious project, the Television satellite TV ANN - Arab News Network, which is gaining strength and proving to be a better news service than the Saudi Arabian backed and financed, MBC.
See also Syria-Israel.htm