Rice, Syrian minister to meet in Egypt - sources

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, May 2 (Reuters) US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will meet Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem in Egypt tomorrow or Friday, a senior Iraqi official and a senior Arab diplomat said today.

It would be Rice's first meeting with a Syrian foreign minister since she took over at the State Department in 2005.

The two sources declined to be named and the United States has not confirmed that a meeting will take place.

After failing to win his way with the Syrian government during his first administration, US President George W Bush decided that dialogue with Damascus was futile.

A meeting with Moualem, a former ambassador to Washington, would be a reversal of that policy, reflecting the gravity of Bush's predicament in Iraq.

The sources said Rice and Moualem would also talk about Lebanon, where Syria and the United States back opposing sides in a showdown over UN plans to try those responsible for assassinating former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri in 2005.

The senior Iraqi official said the meeting might bring about a breakthrough on Lebanon but he gave no details.

Rice and Moualem will be in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh for two days of meetings of Iraq's neighbours and UN Security Council permanent members.

REUTERS ABM RK1734