UN Secretary-General Offers Support for Middle East Peace Process

In a significant development, UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali has expressed the organization's readiness to play a role in the Middle East peace process, announcing a willingness to facilitate a workable conclusion to the ongoing talks. A meeting between Boutros-Ghali and Syrian President Hafez Assad at the Hotel Intercontinental in Geneva was described as "excellent" by the secretary-general's spokeswoman, Therese Gasthout. The talks come ahead of a scheduled meeting between Assad and US President Bill Clinton on Sunday, which will focus on Syria's peace negotiations with Israel.

Key Takeaways:

• The UN Secretary-General, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, has offered to support the Middle East peace process, with plans to facilitate a workable conclusion to the ongoing talks.
• The secretary-general met with Syrian President Hafez Assad at the Hotel Intercontinental in Geneva, where the atmosphere between the two men was described as "excellent" by Boutros-Ghali's spokeswoman, Therese Gasthout.
• A meeting between Assad and US President Bill Clinton is scheduled for Sunday, focusing on Syria's peace negotiations with Israel.
• Swiss President Otto Stich expressed optimism about the outcome of the US-Syrian meeting, and announced his desire to "intensify Switzerland's relationship with Syria," including the possibility of opening an embassy in Bern.
• Switzerland has also indicated a willingness to join the Partnership for Peace initiative, approved by NATO leaders earlier this week, which would grant interested countries some participation in NATO without immediate membership.

Statistics:

• The meeting between Boutros-Ghali and Assad lasted over one hour.
• The US-Syrian meeting is scheduled to last three hours.
• Switzerland's President Otto Stich met with US President Bill Clinton at 7 p.m. on Saturday in Geneva.

Sources:

• UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali
• US President Bill Clinton
• Syrian President Hafez Assad
• Swiss President Otto Stich
• Therese Gasthout, UN Secretary-General's spokeswoman.