Syria's Foreign Minister Walid Al-Moualem visits Iraq for talks

Walid al-Moualem. In a September statement at the UN, he said, "Tragically, we all end up paying the price when the decision-makers in Washington believe that they know better, and are in a better position to understand and grasp the needs and circumstances of the Arabs. They diagnose the ambitions and aspirations of the Arab individual in a manner that is tailored to their own vision."

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Syria's foreign minister pledged his support for the Iraqi government on a landmark visit to Baghdad on Sunday and said setting a timetable to withdraw U.S. troops would reduce violence.

It was the first time a Syrian minister has visited Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003 and comes amid increased talk of diplomatic efforts to involve Iraq's neighbors Syria and Iran in helping to end the violence ravaging the country.

Syria has been accused by Washington of doing too little to prevent Islamist fighters from crossing the border into Iraq and fomenting a Sunni insurgency in the west of the country.

But Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem rejected that.

"We condemn terrorism," he said at a joint news conference with Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari.

"We support the elected government and national reconciliation," he said. "We support the unity of Iraq and we think that a timetable for pulling out U.S. occupation forces from Iraq will reduce violence in Iraq."

U.S. President George W. Bush is under growing pressure to begin withdrawing the 140,000 U.S. troops still in Iraq more than 3-1/2 years after the invasion, but the Iraqi government has said the time is not right for them to go.

It was a rare visit by an Arab minister. Many Arab governments have been wary of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Shi'ite-led administration's close ties to Washington and to non-Arab, Shi'ite Iran.

Zebari told Reuters in October the visit by Moualem would be an "acid test" of neighboring Sunni Arab states' willingness to help Iraq's Shi'ite-led unity government stabilize the country.

Iraq and Syria, run by rival wings of the Arab nationalist Baath party, severed ties when Syria sided with Iran during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war.

STRAINED RELATIONS

Since the U.S.-led invasion, of which Syria was a vocal critic, relations have been strained. Zebari said Iraq hoped to restore relations: "We don't expect to solve all the problems at one time but there will be more and more visits," he said.

"Iraq's security and stability is an issue for Syria and the neighboring countries," Zebari said. "It's important they support our government and fight terrorism."

Iraq's government spokesman, Ali al-Dabbagh, said officials would press Moualem to do more to prevent al Qaeda militants entering Iraq, cut off sources of funding for diehard supporters of Saddam Hussein and end safe haven for Saddam's Baathists.

Read the rest at the Washington Post

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