A Russian newspaper says Russia has begun delivering fighter jets to Syria as part of $1 billion contract, but the Russian arms trading monopoly has denied the report.

The Bush administration has used discussions between Israeli Transportation Minister and former Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns to insist that there should be no talks between Israel and Syria.

An Israeli Cabinet member says the government wants to open peace talks with Syria and is prepared to discuss terms for returning the Golan Heights. The Cabinet minister's comments follow a newspaper report on Israeli overtures to Damascus.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz discussed Syria, and the Iranian nuclear program, in a meeting Wednesday that opened an annual bilateral strategic dialogue. U.S. officials are making clear their misgivings about an early resumption of Israeli-Syrian talks.

Syria says it will refuse to cooperate with a new U.N.-backed tribunal for suspects in the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

A five-member United Nations team is heading to Lebanon next week to assess the monitoring of the country's border with Syria.

Russia and Syria are in talks on proposals for the development of oil and natural gas fields in Syria.

The Syrian ambassador to the United States has called a meeting between Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice "significant." The two U.S. and Syrian officials met for about 30 minutes last Thursday on the sidelines of an Iraq stabilization conference in Egypt. VOA's Stephanie Ho has more on the story from Washington.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has begun a session of talks with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallim, in one of the highest-level meetings between the two countries in years. Rice and al-Muallim met in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, where they are attending a conference on Iraq.

The first high-level talks of the year will be held Thursday between U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Syria's foreign minister, a U.S. official said. But a substantive meeting between the United States and Iran - another staunch U.S. Mideast foe - appeared less certain.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Government of Syria signed an agreement to provide the country - sheltering over one million Iraqi refugees - with $2.06 million to renovate hospitals, train medical staff and provide new medical equipment, including ambulances.

For months, the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush has resisted the idea of holding talks with Iran and Syria, which he accuses of mischief in the Middle East, particularly in Iraq.