But the war has had a dramatic effect throughout the Middle East, creating tensions that reverberate through American diplomatic relationships with other countries.
One of those countries is Syria, which has seen 1.5 million Iraqis pour across its eastern border as the war has progressed. Syria supported America against Saddam Hussein in the Desert Storm war in Kuwait, but opposed the 2003 American war on Iraq.
“We have 1.5 million Iraqi refugees in Syria, and that has imposed a tremendous burden on our country,” the Syrian ambassador, Imad Moustapha, said in an interview Tuesday. “That's the equivalent of 30 million refugees coming to the United States. How do you think your country would deal with that?”
That's pretty direct communication coming from a diplomat, but that is Imad Moustapha, a Renaissance man who rose to diplomatic prominence along the unlikely path of an academic.
Moustapha was in Missoula on Tuesday to “directly address Americans” in a speech at the University of Montana. The ambassador's speech was sponsored by the World Affairs Council of Montana.
In the interview, Moustapha said Americans, to the extent that they know anything at all about Syria, have a mistaken view of his country.
“Americans have been told so many things about Syria that are absolutely not true,” Moustapha said. “We have been accused of many things that are absolutely untrue.”
Some are comical, such as the notion that Syrian women can't drive. But that's Saudi Arabia. In Syria, a woman is the vice president.
Others are more serious, such as the claim that Syria played a role in the 2005 assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. That crime, which is under investigation by the United Nations, has roiled Syrian-U.S. relations, which were already tempestuous.
For instance, Syria is a major player in the Middle East, and is a central figure in the ongoing turmoil that is Israeli-Palestinian relations. America has accused Syria of sheltering groups like Hezbollah, termed a terrorist organization by the U.S. government. But Moustapha said America's view of Hezbollah is inconsistent with views in the Middle East.
“Hezbollah is regarded as a freedom-fighting operation,” he said. “They drove Israel out of its occupation of Lebanon.”
Syria also has a close relationship with Iran, a relationship that makes perfect sense to Moustapha if not to President Bush.
“What is the problem with that?” he said. “They have been demonized by your country, but they have been a peaceful neighbor, and they are not occupying any of our land.”
His reference is to both the U.S. occupation of Iraq and the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory and the Golan Heights, which it first seized from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967.
Moustapha said Syria is a serious participant in the peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians, but said peace will only come through a land exchange that returns occupied lands to the Palestinians.
“I think that anyone would agree that that is the proper course,” he said.
Syria, of course, has a fractious relationship with Israel, epitomized most recently by the Israeli bombing of a military site in Syria in September.
Although information about the attack has been murky at best, Israel suspected that Syria was attempting to develop some sort of nuclear capability through its relationship with North Korea.
Moustapha said that was a lie.
“There are no nuclear projects in Syria,” he said. “Anything else is ... a lie, totally, no truthfulness whatsoever.”
Moustapha said he came to Montana because the trip offered him a chance to participate in a give-and-take with Americans. It's difficult for Americans to get a good understanding of Syria, but it's quite easy for Syrians to know quite a bit about America because of its dominant position in the world.
“If there's a movie playing in the theater, it's from Hollywood,” he mused. “America is everywhere.”
For just an evening, Syria came to Montana.
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