The World: Assad: I Am Not Pessimistic

In Damascus last week, Time Inc. Editor-in-Chief Hedley Donovan had a two-hour interview with Syrian President Hafez Assad. It was the first that Assad had ever given to an American journalist. Donovan's report:

Hafez Assad is not exactly a household name in America. But this 45-year-old air force commander, now President of Syria, has rather suddenly become a factor in world politics. He is waited upon by U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko, and he does his own shuttling to other Arab capitals. His international importance could be short-lived. But at this particular turn...

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