ANKARA/DAMASCUS - Man in the street in Syria believe that the U.S. is incapable of attacking Syria.
In exclusive interviews by A.A correspondents in the streets of Damascus, the majority of the Syrians expressed that they do not expect any attack from the U.S.. ''America is too tired of its war in Iraq, both psychologically and financially. More than 1,000 U.S. soldiers died in a meaningless war. We do not give a slight chance to the possibility of a new war in the Middle East,'' said an elderly Syrian citizen.
Asked about the U.S. attempts to bring ''democracy'' to the region, most Syrians answered that the concept of democracy should not be imposed on the peoples. ''Democracy should be a movement that arises from the grassroots of a society. If the U.S. is a staunch supporter of 'democracy,' why does it continue to refuse recognition of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, which has been a successfully functioning democracy since its independence in 1983? 'Why does the U.S. administration uses double standards in global politics? Perhaps history will answer such questions,'' Syrians said.
According to the results of a private survey received by A.A correspondents, the majority of Syrians love Turks who are staunch supporters of Ataturk's principle of ''peace at home, peace in the world.''
''Regardless of our ethnic backgrounds, whether it is Arabic, Kurdish, Assyrian or Armenian, we Syrians have excellent historical ties in not only commercial areas but also social and cultural areas. As a candidate to European Union membership, Turkey is a good role model for the countries in the region,'' told a young history teacher in Damascus.
Another Syrian, Dr. Shafiq Rifki, has told the A.A that what is actually going on in the Middle East is like a small and meaningless game. ''The present situation in the Middle East is already out of control. We do not think that the U.S. administration will risk its interests in the region by declaring war on another country, after demolishing the Iraqi society. Americans told the world --before the war-- that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. However the reality is that there were absolutely no such weapons in Iraq. If there have been no weapons found, why is the U.S. insisting on staying in Iraq? We are confident that the U.S. administration will not want any other new war in the region. Just look at what happened in Vietnam....,'' said Rifki.
Meanwhile, 30-year-old watch repair shop owner Yusuf Safran has indicated that it is in fact Israel that has killed and continues to kill the residents of the region (Middle East). The U.S. would be better off by cutting its commercial and political ties with Israel. We do not believe that 350 million Americans would want to sacrifice their future for 4 million Israelis!''
Jamila Kamel, a mother of five, said that as a mother she does not want to see violence going on in the upcoming year. ''We have lost too many precious lives in the region due to the policies of Israel and U.S.. This is high time to say ''NO'' to further violence. We deserve to live in peace as humans.''
Meanwhile, Syrian deputy Serif Hamdi Abaza, who is actually of Abhaza origin, indicated that Turkey can help Syria with its global experiences in finance, commerce, education, politics and especially diplomatics.
''Turkey is about to become our door giving on the European Union. Likewise, we (Syria) will be Turkey's door to the Middle East. For the past two years, hundreds of Syrian students have chosen Turkish universities for their education. Syrian students are indeed very happy to be studying in Turkey. We have various projects coming up in the educational sector and hope to see Turkish universities open departments in Syrian cities,'' remarked Abaza.