Submitted by BernardZ(Australia), Feb 22, 2005 at 22:32
Lebanon a united country. It is full of factions that can be played off against each other. Syria's army is nearby. It has control of a significant terrorist organization inside Lebanon. Lebanon will also still need Syrians for cheap labour. So Syria will still keep a great influence on Lebanon even if it does pull out.
As far as the Golan Heights are concerned, from Syria's point of view there is no rush. By refusing to negotiate, Syria shows strength whereas accepting any sort of peace deal with Israel now would mean agreeing to take less than Syria could have gotten earlier. That shows the son is a defeatist and a loser.
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