Damascus - European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana told reporters in Damascus after meeting Syrian President Bashar al- Assad on Wednesday that he hoped 2009 would be a year of peace talks. Solana, who began a week-long trip to the Middle East in Syria Tuesday night, said he had "the feeling there is a desire to push negotiations (with Israel) forward" after his morning meeting with al-Assad and Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallim.
But Solana and his Syrian counterpart disagreed on the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2007.
Solana said that the EU's policy on the Islamist Palestinian Hamas group was clear and constant.
EU Parliament President Hans-Gert Poettering reiterated that stance in an interview with Deutsche Presse-Agentur
