Welch said the United States disapproves of Syria's cooperation with the U.N. investigation of former PM Rafik Hariri's murder .

Welch said in an interview he gave in London that was published in Lebanese newspapers Friday, that his country would back any attempt by the Syrian people to topple Bashar Assad's regime but added that Washington did not encourage such action.

In response to a question about whether the United States was satisfied with Syria's cooperation with the U.N. commission investigating Hariri's killing, Welch said:

"Of course it is not satisfied because it took too long to reach an agreement to interview President Assad. Syria was supposed to be one of the first to talk about the issue."

The commission had been seeking to interview Assad since July when former probe chief Detlev Mehlis headed the inquiry. The meeting finally took place this week between Assad and the new chief investigator Serge Brammertz.

Welch said relations between the United States and Syria were "not good and going from bad to worse."

U.S. President George Bush issued an executive order Wednesday authorizing the U.S. Treasury Department to freeze the assets of anyone involved in the truck bombing that killed Hariri and 22 others on Feb. 14, 2005. It authorizes the same action against anyone found to have obstructed the work of U.N. investigators, and underscored suspicions of Syrian involvement.

The U.S. official said his country has urged Syria on several occasions to "change its behavior" but Damascus chose instead to continue intervening in Lebanon's internal affairs and supporting "terror groups."

Asked if the United States favored a change in regime in Syria, Welch said:

"If this is what the Syrian people want then...we will back them in that direction. But we don't favor this choice. All we ask of the Syrian regime is to change its behavior. But this does not mean that we are comfortable with the regime and we accept it."

He dismissed as "complete nonsense" any speculation that the Bush administration may have struck a deal with Syria that would clear it from involvement in the Hariri assassination saying his country does not have any influence on the investigation.

Press reports have previously said that the United States may be seeking a deal with Syria at the expense of the inquiry to ensure Damascus' cooperation with preventing militants from crossing its border into Iraq to join the anti-American insurgency.

Picture: David Welch (L ) & President Assad ( R)

Source: Naharnet- Ya Libnan