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Clinton Phones Barak Following Assad's Death
President Bill Clinton held phone discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak on Saturday after the death of Syrian President Hafez al-Assad, White house spokesman Joe Lockhart said.
Clinton, who was in Minnesota for fundraising, talked with Barak for about 10 minutes to discuss the peace process in the Middle East, Lockhart said.
"They primarily discussed issues on the Palestinian track but touched on all areas (including Syria)," he said.
"We are obviously at a very critical part of the process and they've been talking on a regular basis," Lockhart said. Earlier, Clinton said he was saddened by the news of President Assad's death. He said he always respected President Assad despite their differences.
"While we had our disagreements, I always respected him because I felt that he was open and straightforward with me and because he meant it when he said he had made a strategic decision for peace," Clinton told reporters in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
He regretted that peace was not achieved in Assad's lifetime. "I hope that it can still be achieved in no small measure because of the commitment he made," he added.
Clinton would not make any prediction for the impact that Assad's death would have on the peace process on Syrian-Israeli track.
"I think it's premature to say," he said.
"There will be a period of mourning in Syria, there will be a period of sorting out, and the Syrian people will make some decisions, and then we'll see what happens," he added.
Lockhart said Clinton would not attend Assad's funeral on Tuesday but was sending Secretary of State Madeleine Albright to represent the United States.
"The president believed Secretary Albright was the appropriate person to go," he said.
Analysts said Israeli-Palestinian negotiations would come up at the top of the negotiating table because of the passing of Assad. And Israeli and Palestinian negotiators will come to Washington for a framework accord so that the two sides could reach the final stage of peace settlement.
Clinton is scheduled to meet with Palestinian President Yasser Arafat on Wednesday. The meeting is aimed at laying the groundwork for an eventual three-way Israeli-Palestinian-U.S. peace summit.
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