Iran and Syria declare a "united front"

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran and Syria, who both are facing pressure from the United States, said yesterday they will form a "united front" to confront possible threats against them, state-run television reported.

"In view of the special conditions faced by Syria, Iran will transfer its experience, especially concerning sanctions, to Syria," Mohammad Reza Aref, Iran's first vice president, was quoted as saying after meeting Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Naji Otari.

"At this sensitive point, the two countries require a united front due to numerous challenges."

Iran's state-run TV quoted Aref as saying the Iranian government would provide Syria with the expertise it has gained in facing U.S. sanctions over its alleged support for international terrorists and European pressure over its suspect nuclear program.

Syria was hit with U.S. sanctions last year after the Bush administration accused its leaders of letting insurgents go to Iraq to fight U.S.-led occupation troops.

In September, the U.N. Security Council adopted a resolution backed by the United States and France calling on Syria to withdraw its 14,000 troops from Lebanon and stop interfering in Lebanese affairs.

Many Lebanese blamed Syria for Monday's car bombing in Beirut that killed fromer Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, but the Syrian government has denied responsibility. The U.S. is recalling its ambassador from Syria in apparent response to Hariri's killing.

The U.S. also accuses Syria of aiding anti-Israeli militants and supporting insurgents in Iraq.

Iran and Syria have been strategic allies for years. Syria was the only Arab country that continued its warm relations with Iran during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war.

Iran, which President Bush had labeled an "axis of evil" with North Korea and prewar Iraq, was named an "outpost of tyranny" last month by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

The United States has accused Iran of seeking to produce nuclear weapons.

Syria's ambassador to the United States, asked by CNN what the common front with Iran entailed, stressed that it was not an anti-American alliance and said Syria was trying to improve its relations with Washington.

"Syria is trying to engage constructively with the United States. ... We are not the enemies of the United States, and we do not want to be drawn into such an enmity," Imad Moustapha said.

The U.S., in turn, is working closely with French President Jacques Chirac, who made a surprise trip to Beirut yesterday to convey condolences to the Hariri family. Syria is "rapidly climbing up the agenda" of next Monday's meeting between President Bush and Chirac, a senior administration official, speaking anonymously due to diplomatic sensitivity, told The Washington Post. "We're on the same page. ... The entire international community wants to see something happen."

The U.S. has put Syria on its list of states that sponsor terrorism for providing a refuge for extremists and a supply lifeline for groups such as Lebanon's Hezbollah.

A source with ties to the administration also said a plan was developed a month ago to authorize U.S. military forces to cross Iraq's border into Syria if they were in "hot pursuit" of suspected insurgents. But the administration, said the source, shelved the plan after resistance from U.S. commanders who asked for more time to handle the situation.

U.S. officials have stopped short of directly accusing Syria of involvement in Hariri's death, but Rice said the assassination was the "proximate cause" of the recall of U.S. Ambassador Margaret Scobey.

Besides finding common cause with Iran, Syria's leadership could try to divert pressure by stepping up support for attacks into northern Israel by the Hezbollah guerrilla group in Lebanon.

Still trying to get the Golan Heights back from Israel, Syria could not afford to have Lebanon's government sign a separate peace deal with the Jewish state.

Compiled from The Associated Press, The Washington Post and Reuters.