BEIRUT, Lebanon, Jan. 4 (UPI) -- Resetting ties between opposition leaders in Lebanon and the Damascus government will take place when conditions are ripe, fiery leader Walid Jumblatt said.
Lebanon's relationship with Syria is on the mend following international pressure on Damascus to loosen its grip on the political scene in Beirut.
Jumblatt, the leader of the Progressive Socialist Party, said he would consider a trip to Damascus when it was appropriate to do so, Lebanon's Daily Star newspaper reports.
Jumblatt severed his relationship with Damascus following international pressure on Syria in the wake of the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in downtown Beirut.
His son, Prime Minister Saad Hariri, earned the praise of the international community when he met with Syrian President Bashar Assad in December.
Several Lebanese lawmakers, including Jumblatt, accuse Syria of playing a role in the 2005 assassination of Hariri.
Jumblatt is moving to repair ties with Hariri and his ruling March 14 coalition. The PSP leader struck a significant blow to Hariri's attempts to form a new government when he defected from March 14 following parliamentary elections in June 2009.
