Syria Accused of Snubbing Jordan

Syrian foreign minister Walid al-Muallem will not visit Jordan in the near future because President Bashar al-Assad has lost interest in engaging with his Arab neighbours, according to an opinion article published on the All4Syria website.



Diplomatic sources quoted in the piece said Muallem should have arrived in the capital Amman last week for a meeting with his Jordanian counterpart, but the meeting was cancelled at the last minute by Syrian officials.



The sources told the website that the event was called off even though Damascus knew that Jordanian foreign minister Naser Joudeh had chosen not to travel with King Abdullah on a trip to the United States so that he could stay behind and receive Muallem.



The same sources said Assad did not want to be perceived as “following Jordan”, and instead wanted to establish his own relationship with the United States.



“He wants to pave his own way to the US instead of having that path laid through another country like Jordan,” said one source. “Assad views himself as a crucial player in the region, and wishes to be viewed as a leader, not a follower.”



All4Syria is generally supportive of the Syrian government but also presses for policy change.