Syria softening refusal on peace summit

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DAMASCUS, Nov 22 (AP): Syria is softening its refusal to attend the Annapolis peace conference and already has won dividends, including a visit from Jordan's king that marked an end to regional isolation. But as it bends, it risks alienating Palestinian militants and its ally Iran.
Syria was unlikely to announce a final decision on whether it will go to the conference until after a meeting of Arab foreign ministers to be held in Cairo Friday to map out a joint strategy.
Publicly, Syrian officials have said Syria would not go unless its demands for the return of the Golan Heights, seized by Israel in 1967, are addressed.
State-run newspapers, which reflect government thinking, continued Wednesday to criticize the conference, calling it 'suspicious'.
But intense diplomatic activity toward Damascus and comments made by President Bashar Assad this week suggest that possible deals to secure Syrian attendance might be worked out behind the scenes. On Monday, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said he believed Syria's foreign minister would attend.
At a meeting of Syria's leadership Monday, Assad said the region is witnessing events that "could have grave impact on the future of the countries and peoples if they are not dealt with in a rational way." His words were taken to mean the peace conference in the US
And the United States seems to have met some of Syria's demands to prod Damascus into going to Annapolis. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Wednesday the United States will give room for those other conflicts to be aired at Annapolis, including Syria's dispute with Israel over the Golan.
Despite sour relations between the US and Syria, the Bush administration appears keen on a Syrian presence at Monday's conference in Annapolis, which would give the impression that Syria can be lured out of Iran's orbit and into the Arab fold. Syria, which the United States accuses of being a state sponsor of terror, is an archenemy of Israel and supports radical anti-Israel Palestinian factions.