Israel has no objections to Syria at peace meeting

By Avida Landau

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel does not oppose Syria and other Arab states attending an international conference on Palestinian statehood provided they support the U.S.-led peace process, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said on Monday.

Olmert said the countries that were invited to the U.S.-sponsored conference would be those that accepted what he called "international parameters" and the long-stalled "road map" peace plan, which Syria has long opposed.

It is unclear if Syria would agree to attend the conference if conditions were imposed on participants.

Any U.S. invitation to Syria could be further complicated by a reported Israeli air strike on September 6 on Syria, which some U.S. officials have linked to apparent Israeli suspicions of secret nuclear cooperation between Damascus and North Korea.

Syrian officials said on Monday that the Israeli raid had all but finished off chances for resuming peace talks.

Washington signalled on Sunday it would invite Syria and other members of an Arab League panel to the conference, pencilled in for mid-to-late November, but suggested Damascus must renounce violence and seek an end to the conflict.

Speaking to a parliamentary committee in a closed-door session on Monday, Olmert emphasised to Israeli lawmakers that Arab participation hinged on certain criteria.

"We have no reason to raise opposition. As far as I am concerned, anyone who takes part in the meeting, in accordance with the criteria, represents to me a positive development," Olmert was quoted by a parliamentary official as saying.