BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT C(voice-over): For Syrian President Hafez Al-Assad, here swearing in a recently appointed new prime minister and Cabinet, Middle East peacemaking appears on the verge of another spurt forward. Otherwise, say Syrian sources, their president, along with Foreign Minister Farouk Al-Sharaa, might not find a mini-summit with United States President Bill Clinton in Geneva such a must to attend. On the streets of Damasucs, it's commonplace for Syrians to say they're hopeful for peace with Israel. But their expectations for peace are dampened by what they claim are decades of Israeli arrogance and greed for land. (on camera): The Syrian and U.S. presidents haven't held face- to-face discussions in six years, boosting hopes their Geneva get- together may open the way for a quick resumption of Syrian-Israeli negotiations, leading to a possible peace deal, including Lebanon, this year. (voice-over): But silencing the battlefield in south Lebanon, pulling out Israeli occupation troops, returning the Golan Heights to Syria, and signing a three-way Israeli-Syrian-Lebanese peace treaty is a tall order for the remaining months in the Clinton administration. A tight agenda, in which the upcoming Assad-Clinton meeting is regarded by many as crucial.</s>RIAD TABBARAH, LEBANESE POLITICAL ANALYST: I think it will probably open the dialogue again, the negotiations again between the two parties, but I don't think we should jump to the conclusion that everything is rosy and things will move, and everything has been agreed on.</s>SADLER: The long-serving Syrian president is looking to his U.S. counterpart for even-handed mediation in which Syria's bottom line, a return of the Golan Heights, is guaranteed in exchange for peace with Israel. Brent Sadler, CNN, Damascus.
Clinton to Meet With Syrian President Hafez Al-Assad Sunday