US state senator meets Syria's Assad, urges support for Damascus
A US state senator has held a meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus, calling for more support for the Syrian government.
Speaking to reporters in the Syrian capital on Thursday, Dick Black, part-time state senator of Virginia, said it would be "beneficial" for Washington to speak directly to President Assad.
The remarks by Black, an outspoken Republican, contradict those made by US officials who claim that the Syrian president has lost legitimacy.
During his meeting with President Assad, the US senator emphasized that what is happening in Syria is far from disinformation practiced by some parties at the US administration.
The Syrian president, for his part, said terrorism knows no borders, adding that the fight against terror requires a joint international effort that is not limited to the military level and includes battling Wahhabism, which is widely promoted by Saudi clerics.
The US senator also held meetings with other Syrian government officials, where he stressed his resolve to advocate better Damascus-Washington ties.
"I will be Syria's voice," the official SANA Syrian news agency quoted Black as saying.
Prior to his trip, Black said in a letter that he was traveling to Syria "in an attempt to restore peace and prevent the slaughter of Christians and other minorities" in the conflict-ridden Arab country.
Meanwhile, an aide to Black said the senator resigned as the co-chair of senator Ted Cruz's presidential campaign in Virginia shortly before his Syria visit in order to "avoid any possible distraction" in connection with his trip.
On his Twitter account, Black stated that he supported Assad because he was stemming the growth of the Takfiri Daesh terrorist group.
“If Assad falls, Isis (Daesh) will secure Syria and march on Europe,” the tweet said.
Back in 2014, the state senator sent a letter to Assad praising him.
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