US Special Envoy to Syria and Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack on Sunday clarified remarks in which he said Israel “still" occupies the Golan Heights, stressing that his comments did not represent a change in Washington's policy recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the territory.
Barrack made the original remarks on Friday during an interview with Lebanese-Australian entrepreneur Mario Nawfal. They appeared to conflict with President Donald Trump's 2019 decision to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
Israel captured the territory from Syria during the 1967 Six Day War and formally applied sovereignty over it in 1981. The United Nations and most of the international community continue to regard the Golan as occupied Syrian territory, but Trump in 2019 recognized Israeli sovereignty.
In a statement to The Associated Press on Sunday, Barrack said his reference to Israel's continued “occupation" was intended only as a description of the territory's historical status.
“United States policy on the Golan was set by President Trump in 2019 and is unchanged," he said.
Barrack explained that he had been discussing why he does not expect Israel to annex territory in Lebanon, where Israeli forces remain in parts of the south following the latest conflict with Hezbollah. He said negotiated agreements tend to be more durable than territorial arrangements and cited the Golan as an example of territory remaining disputed for generations.
Barrack also criticized Israeli strikes last week on an airbase in northern Syria. Israeli officials said the operation was intended to prevent Turkey from establishing a military presence there.
The US envoy subsequently sought to clarify another controversial comment concerning negotiations between Israel and Lebanon over an Israeli withdrawal and Hezbollah's disarmament.
Barrack had said “there are two people missing from that (negotiating) table - Hezbollah and Iran." The remark sparked speculation that he was suggesting Tehran and Hezbollah should participate in the US-backed talks.
On Sunday, however, Barrack explicitly rejected that interpretation.
“I was describing the difficulty of the problem, not proposing a new table," Barrack told AP. “Hezbollah is a designated foreign terrorist organization. We do not negotiate with it, and nothing I said suggests otherwise."
He explained that Iran's role stems from its support for Hezbollah, adding that “the weapons in question are supplied and financed by Iran," making the issue more difficult to resolve.
Defense Minister Israel Katz had criticized Barrack's original Golan remarks on Saturday, saying they were “full of inaccuracies and contradict President Trump’s clear position," and arguing that US representatives cannot disregard the administration's established policy on the territory.