Syrian FM: Assad-Olmert meeting in Paris not on agenda

French President Nicolas Sarkozy invited Assad along with some 40 foreign leaders for the launch of a new Union for the Mediterranean, aimed at boosting cooperation between European Union and Mediterranean rim states. Muallem was in Paris to prepare Assad's visit, the first by a Syrian leader in seven years.

'Talks just beginning'

Muallem added that indirect talks between Israel and Syria, which resumed under Turkish mediation in March after an eight-year freeze in relations, were "only just beginning."

"The essence of the indirect talks is to prepare the ground for direct talks," Muallem said, adding that the process would require "important involvement from the United States, the European Union and Russia."

Assad himself last week dismissed any direct talks with Olmert on the sidelines of the Paris summit in line with his previous statements that such a meeting would not take place before next year.

Syrian opposition calls for protest rally

Meanwhile, Syrian opposition parties called on Friday for a protest rally to mark Assad's visit to Paris, to demand a halt to rights abuses in the country.

The Syrian leader will meet Sarkozy on the eve of the summit, and stay on for France's Bastille Day ceremonies on July 14, sealing the renewal of high-level contacts between Paris and Damascus.

In a statement issued Friday, Syrian opposition groups called for a rally in Paris on July 13 to demand an end to the "arbitrary arrest of intellectuals and political opponents," to torture in Syrian jails, respect for human rights and the lifting of a 45-year-old emergency law.

French officials said Sarkozy would raise the issue of human rights during his talks with Assad.