Rice: ties with Syria getting worse

WASHINGTON, Feb. 15 (UPI) -- U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Tuesday relations with Syria were worsening and demanded a pullout of Syrian troops from Lebanon.

"Let me be very clear that this is not the first time that we have discussed with the Syrian government our differences," she said after a meeting with Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmad Aboul Gheit.

Earlier, Washington announced it was recalling Margaret Scobey, its envoy to Damascus, for consultations following the Monday slaying of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, an opponent of Syrian troops in the country.

Washington wants Syrian troops out of Lebanon and also accuses Syria of supporting Palestinian militant groups and allowing foreign fighters to use its soil to enter Iraq and engage in anti-U.S. insurgency.

"The Syrian government is unfortunately on a path right now that where relations are not improving but are worsening," Rice said.

Although Washington has not explicitly blamed Syria for Hariri's killing, it has fingered the Syrian military presence in Lebanon for the security situation there. Syria says its troops in Lebanon provide security.

"The only excuse for that presence has been that it somehow provided internal security," U.S. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said. "Unfortunately, the tragic bombing (Monday) shows that that's just not true."