Democratic Senator Bill Nelson, a member of the Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees, met with President Assad of Syria yesterday, despite being told by the State Department that they disapproved of his trip. America has very limited ties with Syria due to its support of Hezbollah and Hamas which the US and Israel define as terrorist organizations. However, Nelson was positive after his meeting in Damascus that Assad was willing to help in Iraq. “Assad clearly indicated the willingness to cooperate with the Americans and or the Iraqi army to be part of a solution.”

Previous attempts at establishing a dialogue about Iraq have been made by the Syrians before, but have been treated with skepticism. The same is true of Iran, which has increasingly become more anti-American after repeatedly being turned down by the Bush administration to establish diplomatic ties.

White House press secretary Tony Snow made it clear that the United States continues to denounce Syria. “We don’t think that members of Congress ought to be going there,” he said. “I think it’s a real stretch to think the Syrians don’t know where we stand or what we think.”

The senator said he also expressed to the Syrian leader the problems caused by Hezbollah and Hamas and urged Assad to support the release of captured Israeli soldiers. Nelson said the Syrian president responded by saying Israel had 20 Syrians in captivity, one of whom died recently from leukemia.

The senator shrugged off suggestions he was challenging Bush’s authority by sidestepping administration policy that the U.S. have no contact with Syrian officials. “I have a constitutional role as a member of Congress,” Nelson said.

Meanwhile, Bush criticized Damascus anew and called on it to free all political prisoners.

In a statement, the president expressed support for the Syrian people, and said they “deserve a government whose legitimacy is grounded in the consent of the people, not brute force.”

The U.S.-backed government in Lebanon led by Prime Minister Fuad Saniora is being challenged by the Hezbollah-led, pro-Syrian opposition.

Senator John Kerry, Christopher Dodd, and Arlen Specter are also expected to visit Syria. This congressional push to establish ties with Iraq�s neighbors comes after the Iraq Study Group and PM Tony Blair have strongly recommended that Bush diplomatically engage Iran and Syria on the war.

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