DAMASCUS (AFP) — President Bashar al-Assad on Tuesday named Syria's first ambassador to Iraq since the 2003 US-led invasion which toppled Saddam Hussein, the official SANA news agency reported.
Nawaf Fares, who is currently governor of Quneitra in the Golan Heights, took the oath of office in the presence of Assad, who wished him "success in his new mission."
However, it was not clear if and when Fares would take up the post.
Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates have all named ambassadors in the past month. But because of security concerns, the only Arab ambassador actually posted in Baghdad is the Emirati.
The United States has been pressuring Arab states, particularly its allies in the Gulf, to normalise relations with Baghdad.
In the aftermath of the invasion, Washington repeatedly accused Syria of turning a blind eye to foreign fighters crossing its borders into Iraq to battle US-led forces.
But Iraqi President Jalal Talabani told US President George W. Bush last week that Iran and Syria, long targets of US blame over the deadly unrest in Iraq, now posed "no problem."
Fares becomes the first Syrian ambassador to Baghdad for almost three decades due to rivalry between the opposing wings of the Baath party which rules Syria and held power in Saddam's Iraq.
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