Spanning several decades, the meetings in Geneva between US presidents and Syrian President Hafez al-Assad raised hopes for peace in the Middle East.
This content was published on June 16, 2021 – 13:31
Geneva Vision / Claire Braillard / dbu
At the end of the 1960s, the situation in the Middle East was tense. Israel and the Arab states are at war. Syria opposes Israel for the occupied territories of the Golan Heights. The United States hopes to stabilize the region by strengthening ties with Arab nations.
It was in Geneva that presidents Hafez al-Assad and Jimmy Carter met in 1977 for peace negotiations. The talks are not successful.
In 1990, President George HW Bush met Assad again in Geneva. The context is tense, and a few weeks later, the United States attacked Iraq, supported by Syrian troops who have joined the international coalition.
Two other meetings followed in Geneva in 1994 and 2000. At the last summit with Bill Clinton, Hafez al-Assad hinted at a possible peace between Syria and Israel. But hopes are dashed, no concrete action follows.
This video was originally published in French on the website of our partner Genève VisionExternal link.
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