US Mideast envoy wants Syria's help on talks

United States Defense Secretary Robert Gates was expected to arrive in Israel on Sunday as Middle East envoy George Mitchell held talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as Washington stepped up its diplomatic efforts.

Meanwhile, Mitchell arrived overnight for his second visit to Damascus since mid-June on a trip that was to take him on to Israel and the Palestinian territories later on Sunday.

Mitchell wants Syria's help in forging a deal between Israel and the Palestinians, saying after his meeting that restarting talks between Syria, which backs the Palestinian group Hamas, and Israel was a "near-term goal" for Washington.

"If we are to succeed, we will need Arabs and Israelis alike to work with us to bring about comprehensive peace. We will welcome the full cooperation of the government of the Syrian Arab Republic in this historic endeavour," he said.

Bilateral defense

The Pentagon chief's expected talks in Israel and Jordan coincide with high-level diplomatic visits the same week by the Mitchell and a delegation led by Obama's national security advisor, James Jones.

During his six-hour visit to Israel, Gates will meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak to discuss bilateral defense issues including missile defense, Israel's plan to acquire the multinational F-35 fighter jet and efforts to curb Iran's nuclear ambitions, a senior U.S. defense official said.

"We're talking about the threats and challenges that we see in the region," the official told reporters. He said the Israelis were "antsy" about Iran but were not leaning on the Obama administration to halt its effort at expanded direct diplomatic engagement with Tehran.

After Israel, Gates will visit Jordan for talks with King Abdullah and his defense chief that will focus on coordinating efforts to leave a stable Iraq after U.S. forces complete their scheduled pullout by the end of 2011.

"We see pretty eye to eye with the Jordanians on most of the security challenges," the official said.

We're talking about the threats and challenges that we see in the region

U.S. defense official

Iran's threats

Israel and the United States, among others, fear that Iran is seeking to develop a nuclear arsenal under cover of an electricity generation program, a charge Tehran denies and the new atomic energy watchdog head <a href="http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2009/07/03/77720.html">said he saw no evidence of</a>.

Israel and the United States also view Iran as a profound threat to regional security because of its military aid to armed groups in Iraq and Afghanistan, to the Palestinian group Hamas and to Lebanese Hezbollah.

We already have long-running defense understandings with the Americans, and I can only hope this will continue

Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Dan Meridor

The round of U.S. diplomacy with Israel comes amid tensions between the two allies and criticism from an Israeli minister over <a href="http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2009/04/10/70323.html">Washington's stance on Iran's nuclear drive</a>.

On Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the United States might cope with a nuclear Iran by buttressing its allies and spreading an unspecified "defense umbrella" over the region.

Clinton's remarks drew a quick rebuke from Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Dan Meridor. He said it would be far better to keep Iran from crossing the nuclear threshold than to try to counter it with any defense network.

"We already have long-running defense understandings with the Americans, and I can only hope this will continue," Meridor told Reuters on Thursday at a diplomatic reception north of Tel Aviv, reflecting apparent unease over what may be divergent views on coping with the perceived Iranian threat.

Israeli missiles

Iran's Revolutionary Guards <a href="http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2009/07/25/79790.html">said on Saturday</a> that Tehran would strike suspected Israeli nuclear facilities if the Jewish state attacked, Iranian state television reported.

Israel, the Middle East's only nuclear power, is banking on a layered shield against ballistic missiles, co-developed with the United States, to help protect it from any such Iranian attack.

Israeli officials called off a joint test of their <a href="http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2009/04/07/70112.html">Arrow missile-defense shield this week</a> moments before the interceptor, co-produced by Chicago-based Boeing Co. was to have been fired.

The United States also is eager for Israel to formalize plans to start buying as many as 100 Lockheed Martin Corp's radar-evading F-35 Joint Strike Fighter in a potential $15 billion deal, with deliveries starting in 2014.

The purchase has been held up by technology transfer questions, Israel's push for integration of Israeli-built electronic warfare capabilities and cost concerns. The F-35 is being developed with financing from the United States and eight other countries to replace at least 13 types of warplanes, including the multirole F-16 fighter.

The defense official who briefed reporters ahead of Gates' trip said the Obama administration, supported by European allies, had asked the Israelis to be patient "to try to allow us to have diplomacy work."

Gates, a former Central Intelligence Agency director who was President Barack Obama's sole Cabinet holdover from former President George W. Bush, is not bringing any new U.S. positions to Israel, the senior defense official said.

We see pretty eye to eye with the Jordanians on most of the security challenges

U.S. defense official