Damascus, (SANA)_ President Bashar al-Assad and his wife on Monday received President Dimitris Christofias of Cyprus and his wife.

A formal reception was held for the Cypriot President at the People's Palace, where the national anthems of the two countries were played.

The two Presidents reviewed Guards of Honor and the artillery fired 21 rounds in honor of Syria's guest.

Then, the two Presidents shook hands with members of the two countries' delegations.

Later, Presidents al-Assad and Christofias held a round of talks in presence of members of the two delegations.

President Bashar al-Assad said in a joint press conference with President Dimitris Christofias of Cyprus following their talks "We held positive talks marked with friendly feelings, amity, respect and keenness on continuing cooperation and pushing forward the bilateral relations on all political, economic, cultural and social levels in a way that reflects the common historical relations between the two countries and peoples."

President al-Assad added "We had bilateral round of talks and another plenary one, during which the bilateral relations which reflect the deep understanding between both countries on different common issues were dealt with."

President al-Assad said "We also discussed cooperation in the economic, cultural and tourist fields, and we reviewed the agreements to be signed during this visit. The possibility of opening new prospects of cooperation serving the interests and future of both friendly peoples in various domains was also touched upon, taking into consideration that due to the important geographic position of Syria and Cyprus on the Mediterranean, both are qualified to play a key role in the economic and commercial cooperation between the EU and the Middle East region."

Answering a question concerning the mediation between Syria and Iraq as well as the prospects of Syrian-Iraqi relations and the real reasons behind the tension between the two countries and how they can tackle them, President al-Assad said "I can't speak of the prospects because they are related to more than one party and we are one of these parties…but we can speak of Syria's aspirations of having good relations with all Arab states…and if the relationship is good, it must be better…and if it is bad it must be good."

The President added that the real reasons of the problem are clear, and when Syria is accused of killing Iraqis while hosting 1.2 million Iraqis--this is of course its duty--then this is no less than immoral accusations.

President al-Assad added that when Syria is accused of supporting terrorism while it has been fighting terrorism for decades when other countries in the region and outside the region were supporting these terrorists, then this is a political accusation… but it has nothing to do with political logic…when you are accused of terrorism while there is no evidence confirming this, then this is out of the legal logic as well. Subsequently, and directly after these official accusations by the Iraqi government, Syria demanded Iraqi officials concerned to send a delegation to Syria with evidence on these accusations."

The President said: "Till this day and this moment we haven't received any answer after several days of fielding the accusations and the terrorist bombings…therefore, and away from political speculations we hear now and then through media, Syria is keen on the lives of Iraqi people in as much as it's keen on the interests, blood and lives of Syrian people because the sentiments and morals of the Syrian people and the interests of Syria lie in this talk in general."

For his part, President Dimitris Chritofias of Cyprus described his current visit to Syria as reflecting his country's interest in further developing the bilateral relations between the two countries in all fields.

President Chritofias told the press conference that nine bilateral agreements would be singed as part of his visit to Syria. He added that Cyprus supported the Middle East peace process to establish peace and restore the occupied Arab territories, stressing that peace cannot be achieved without the returning of the occupied Syrian Golan and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

The Cypriot President thanked President al-Assad for the role Syria plays in solving the issues of the region and its stability, expressing his country's appreciation of this role which is based on the international legitimacy resolutions and conventions.

President al Assad, answering a question by a reporter,said "We discussed the peace process in the Middle East and the dangers of continued status quo…and voiced Syria's content over the stances of President Chirstofias and the Cypriot government towards our Arab issues, particularly the issue of the occupied Golan."

His Excellency added "We also stressed importance of the role of the European countries and the European Union in pushing the peace process in the region as Europe, due to factors of geography and history, is able more than the others to understand our Arab issues…and because achieving the comprehensive and just peaces in the Middle East will be reflected positively on Europe and the world."

President al-Assad pointed out that he stressed to President Chirstofias that Syria's commitment to the just and comprehensive peace -based on the principle of the return of the occupied Arab territories in Palestine, Lebanon and Syria in return for peace and the implementation of the UN resolutions- reflected Syria's principled stance that security and stability in the Middle East cannot be achieved without peace.

He added that the absence of an Israeli partner in the peace process, and responding to peace calls with more wars would only bring further instability and mounting terrorism to the region and the world.

President al-Assad said "We also reviewed the tragic human situations of the Palestinian people due to the inhuman siege imposed by the Israelis…as well as the urgent need for concerted efforts in the world, including the European Union, to lift this siege, open the crossings and end the human tragedy."

On the Cypriot problem, President al-Assad said "I emphasized that adopting the principle of dialogue is the most successful way for finding a just solution to this problem…we expressed our support to the exerted efforts to reach an agreement agreed by the two sides."

President al-Assad renewed welcome of President Chirstofias, saying "Our joint willingness and desire to further enhance the relations between our two countries will take our two peoples to a better future."

Answering a question by the Cypriot television whether Turkey has to withdraw its military from Cyprus following the example of Syria when it pulled out its army from Lebanon in 2005, President al-Assad said "I can not answer a question concerning the Turkish-Cypriot relationship. But in our talks and discussions today I heard from President Christofias the Cypriot stance on Northern Cyprus, and we came to a conclusion that the essence of the issue is that the solution should be reached through dialogue and international resolutions. Syria had entered Lebanon upon a call from the Lebanese government in 1976, and in Lebanon there is one republic, and the situation is completely different and the comparison is incorrect."

For his part, President Christofias said "Syria and Cyprus have very ancient culture and history and share deeply-rooted relations…Late Presidents Hafez al-Assad and Archbishop Makarios of Cyprus had already left their own marks on the development of these relations between the two countries."

He added that his talks with President al-Assad focused on boosting the relations in all fields. "I made clear to President al-Assad that the partnership agreement between Syria and the EU will be signed as soon as possible to further develop these relations. We also exchanged views on finding solutions to the regional and Middle East issues on the basis of the UN Security Council resolutions and the international legitimacy principles… We strongly support the establishment of an independent Palestinian state."

President Christofias added that talks with President al-Assad also dealt with the latest developments of the Cypriot issue and the existing initiative for the solution, suggesting that the solution to this issue would serve Turkey, Cyprus and the stability in the region.

He pointed out that Syria and Cyprus's distinguished geographical positions were a boost to enhanced relations between both countries and helped open new horizons for cooperation in various fields.

The Cypriot President also condemned Israel's settlement policy and the racial apartheid wall and its acts against the Palestinian people.

President Christofias said his country supported a national unity government in Lebanon.

"In our talks I thanked President al-Assad for Syria's role in solving the issues of the region. I extended an invitation to his Excellency to visit Cyprus, and I would like to thank him for accepting this invitation. I thank him again for the hospitality and heartfelt feelings, and convey to the friendly people of Syria on behalf of the Cypriot people best wishes of prosperity and progress," he concluded.

Responding to a question to the two presidents about exchanging maritime voyages between Syrian city of Lattakia and Cypriot port of Famagusta, President Christofias said "we exchanged opinions about this issue and we asked officials from both sides to follow up this issue to serve the interests of the two countries and peoples."

For his part, President al-Assad said "I agree with what Cypriot President said in this regard … the issue is not complicated and will be solved as soon as possible, but we believe that Cyprus last year and especially after the elections had taken very important steps towards our Arab issues particularly the Syrian issues, and this makes finding solutions to issues of this kind -- technical and not political issues-easy, but before we defined the solution there will be direct discussions among the officials concerned because as I said the issue is technical not political."

In answer to a question on Syria's role in enhancing dialogue and cooperation among countries of the region and help establish security and stability in it under attempts to insight sedition and conflicts, President Christofias said "We highly appreciated the Syrian stance in solving these issues. We see this stance in solving the Cypriot issue. We see that this stance is principled, based on the basics of international legitimacy and conventions. Syria's role is very important in this regard."

The Syrian official delegation consists of vice-president Farouk al Shara, Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem, Presidential Political and Media Advisor Dr. Bouthaina Shaaban, Minister of Social Affairs and Labor Dr. Diala Haj Aref, Minister of Transport Dr. Yarob Badr, Minister of Presidential Affairs Mansour Azzam and Assistant Foreign Minister Abdel Fattah Ammoura.

The Cypriot official delegation consists of Foreign Minister Markos Kypriano, Minister of Communications and Works Nicos Nicolaides and Advisor to Cyprus President for Arab Affairs Soterios Zakhios and the Cypriot Ambassador in Damascus.

H.Zain/Ghossoun/ H. Said/ R. Raslan /Ismael Al Kazhali /Kh.Aridi /F.Zahra