DAMASCUS, Aug 15: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on Tuesday Hezbollah’s resistance had destroyed US plans to reshape the Middle East.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier described Mr Assad’s speech as a ‘negative contribution’, especially the branding of Israel as ‘enemy’ and cancelled a trip to Damascus planned for later in the day.

Mr Assad also aimed sharp criticism at Israel and said peace in the Middle East would remain elusive for the foreseeable future.

“Their ‘New Middle East’, based on subjugation and humiliation, and denial of rights and identity, has turned into an illusion,” the Syrian president said in reference to Washington’s goal of helping to shape what it calls a new, democratic Middle East.

“It is evident that after six years of this (US) administration that there is no peace and there will be none in the foreseeable future,” he told the Syrian Journalists Union in his first public comments since the Israel-Hezbollah war.

The Syrian president said resistance against the ‘enemy’ was legitimate, describing Damascus’s assistance to Hezbollah as an honour for his nation.

“I say to all those who accuse Syria of taking the side of the resistance that this is, for the Syrian people, an honour,” he said in a wide-ranging speech.

“This resistance is a medal to pin on the chest of every Arab citizen, not only Syria,” he said, adding that the Lebanese guerrillas had ‘shattered the myth of an invincible army’.

Mr Assad, 40, who is shaped by his late father’s lifetime of struggle against Israel, said the Jewish state must return Arab land it has occupied since 1967, or face more insecurity.

“The Israeli leadership ... is in front of a historic crossroads. Either it moves toward peace and gives back rights or face constant instability until an (Arab) generation comes and puts an end to the issue.”

Syria, a key Hezbollah ally, wants the Lebanon war to lead to a comprehensive peace settlement that addresses what Damascus regards as the root of instability — Israeli occupation of Arab land, including the Syrian Golan Heights.

“Israel has been trying for decades to gain acceptance in the region. What Israel should know is that every generation has more hatred toward it than the generation before,” Mr Assad said.

“Hatred is not a good word. We do not hate and we do not encourage hatred. But Israel did not leave room in our region except for hatred.”

Hezbollah’s actions would make Israel think twice before pursuing ‘terrorist policies’ in the region, he said.—Reuters/AFP