The foreign ministers of Syria and the Soviet Union met today for talks on how to respond to the Israeli annexation of the Golan Heights, Tass said.
‘It was pointed out that Israel’s provocative attempt to legitimize the annexation of Syria’s Golan Heights is a direct consequence of the anti-Arab Camp David collusion,’ the Soviet news agency said.
Diplomatic sources said Syrian Foreign Minister Abdel Halim Khaddam would ask for more military aid as well as coordinating foreign policy in the region.
Tass mentioned the strategic cooperation agreement between Israel and the United States, which was the subject of a spat between Washington and Jerusalem after Israeli law was imposed on the Heights. Washington suspended teh accord following the Golan annexation.
Tass said the talks were held under provisions of the Soviet-Syrian Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation.
‘The Middle East situation has been still more aggravated of late following Israel’s expansionist actions, backed by the United States,’ Tass said.
Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko was quoted as saying Moscow is committed to ‘solidarity with the struggle of the Syrian and other Arab peoples to restore their legitimate rights and ensure the territorial integrity of their countries.’
Tass said Khaddam expressed his country’s gratitude to the U.S.S.R. for its ‘invariable aid’ in ‘the struggle for the restoration of justice and peace in the Middle East.’
The government-run Syrian media have called for closer ties between Damascus and Moscow and, in a speech Wednesday, Assad said a Middle East balance of power was vital for the liberation of occupied Arab lands.
