Egypt says it's trying to defuse US-Syrian tension

Egypt is trying to defuse tension between the United States and Syria, the Egyptian foreign minister said Tuesday, days before the appearance of a UN

Egypt is trying to defuse tension between the United States and Syria, the Egyptian foreign minister said Tuesday, days before the appearance of a UN report that might turn the world spotlight on Syria. "There is an active and continuous Egyptian effort to defuse the tension in the Syrian-American situation and prevent its explosion" Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit told reporters. "The last thing Egypt wants is to see another point of tension in the region," he added, hours before he was scheduled to fly to Moscow for talks with the Russian government, which has long been allied with Syria.