Top U.S. lawmakers meet Syrian president

Two top-level U.S. Congressional delegations met Syrian President Bashar al-Assad Saturday as the United States seeks to upgrade relations with Damascus.

The Syrian leader hosted Sen. John Kerry, the Massachusetts Democrat who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Rep. Howard Berman, the California Democrat who leads the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Assad took a firm line with the visiting lawmakers, according to the official Syrian news agency SANA.

He said relations had to be based on “dialogue,” rather than dictated by the United States.

Kerry painted the meeting as a break with Bush administration policy.

“Now we have an opportunity with the new president, President (Barack) Obama, a new administration and with a Democratic congress to put in place a different approach,” he said.