"We are not looking for a military solution with Israel under any circumstance, we are ready for negotiations with Israel," Syrian Foreign Minister Walid el-Mualem said in an interview scheduled to air on Al Arabiya TV Wednesday.
El Mualem said that Syria objects to the Middle East Road Map. "The Road Map doesn't exist on the ground," he said. "We are committed to the Arab Initiative."
El Mualem also denied that there is an axis connecting Syria and Iran, similar to the Saudi – Egyptian array. "Syria has always taken care to improve the relations between the Arab world and Tehran, because the geographic and historical reality makes it necessary," he explained.