According to the Jerusalem Post and the Anadolu Agency, Syrian Transitional Government President Bashar al-Assad spoke about his relations with Israel at a meeting of the Atlantic Council on September 22 local time. This is his second consecutive year attending the United Nations General Assembly, and also his third visit to the United States since he took office as president.
Regarding the issue of the ownership of the Golan Heights, Shala emphasized that Damascus believes this territory belongs to Syria, not Israel, and suggested that its ultimate ownership cannot be negotiated.
“Golan Heights is Syrian territory, and this has been recognized by the United Nations,” he said, “Therefore, there is nothing to discuss regarding this territory and its ownership.”
When asked about US President Trump's recognition of Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights, Shala recalled that she had joked about this issue during her meeting with Trump at the White House. Shala visited the White House last November, becoming the first Syrian head of state to visit the US since Syria's independence in 1946.
He recalled that when Trump said the Golan Heights were Israeli sovereign territory, he asked, "Why don't you give New Jersey to the Israelis? The Golan Heights doesn't belong to you; you can't give it to them, but you do own New Jersey."
Shala added that in New Jersey, “there are Democrats everywhere, and they won’t vote for Trump,” so giving it to Israelis “is actually a good idea.”
He further stated that, setting aside this joke, “the Golan Heights belong to their own people. Neither the Syrian President, the US President, nor any other person has the right to abandon them or hand them over to others.”
But he also pointed out that Trump supported Syria and made a historic decision to lift sanctions on Syria. “I have a very unique relationship with him.”
Shala also revealed that Syria and Israel have reached consensus on nearly 90% of the issues during negotiations on security frameworks. However, Israel later withdrew from the negotiations, imposing additional conditions. "We held several rounds of negotiations with Israel, and we had reached almost 90% of the agreements. But at that point, Israel chose to withdraw for various reasons."
According to him, direct talks between the two sides began about a year ago. Damascus first demanded that Israel withdraw to the borders of 1974, and only then did discussions on security arrangements begin. “If these arrangements are successful, then we can start discussing issues related to lasting peace.”
He also said that since the fall of the Assad regime, Israel has continuously launched attacks and invasions against Syria, and occupied new territories. “Syria still chooses to resolve this issue through diplomatic means, through dialogue and negotiation.”
He proposed establishing an international commission to assess Israel's security concerns, "verifying which are merely perceptions and which are genuine concerns."
