After Iran-Israel war, Syria and Lebanon peace deals with Israel needed: US envoy

The Iran-Israel war has opened the way to a “new road” for the Middle East in which Turkey will have a key role to play, Washington’s ambassador to Ankara said Sunday.

“What just happened between Israel and Iran is an opportunity for all of us to say: ‘Time out. Let’s create a new road’ (and) Turkiye is key in that new road,” Ambassador Tom Barrack, who is also the US special envoy to Syria, told the Anadolu state news agency.

“The Middle East is ready to have a new dialogue, people are tired of the same old story,” he said, saying it was essential for decades-long enmities to be reframed.

Israel, he said, was “in the process of being redefined” and its regional neighbors needed to reach agreements with it.

“(Syrian) President (Ahmed) al-Sharaa has indicated that he doesn’t hate Israel and that he wants peace on that border. I think that will also happen with Lebanon. It’s a necessity to have an agreement with Israel,” he said.

What is happening in Syria is “in big part due to Turkey” – a key backer of the opposition forces who toppled Bashar al-Assad and now form the Damascus government – and Turkey could play a central role in changing the regional narrative, he said.

US President Donald Trump and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan “see that this is an opportunity at a really interesting point in both of their lives where they can change the dialogue,” he said.

“And dialogue in the Middle East takes strong leadership.”

Barrack also said he believed there would be a ceasefire soon in the deadly Gaza war which would also speed up a shift in regional thinking.

“We’re going to see a ceasefire in Gaza in the near future, I think we have the right team on it,” he told Anadolu.

“Everybody is starting to move back towards the Abraham Accords, especially as the Gaza situation dissipates,” he said referring to the US-sponsored agreements struck by Israel to normalize ties with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco.

And he expressed confidence that Turkey and Israel – whose relationship has been shattered by the Gaza war -- would resume their former ties.

“It can happen again, it’s not a religious issue, it’s a misunderstanding of territorial desires. So having a discussion, a dialogue ... will take place.”