Bush's Tough Talk After Iraq Puts Syria On The Defensive.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(NATIONAL ISSUE)

Byline: BRIAN MITCHELL

In Cold War terms, Syria is being Finlandized, though maybe Jordanized would fit better in that part of the world.

The Arab country now finds itself squeezed on three sides by armed giants -- Israel, Turkey and the U.S. in Iraq. None of the three needs another reason to wish away the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. And no one now doubts that such wishes can come true.

So Syria is making nice as it nervously awaits a planned visit from Secretary of State Colin Powell.

How far Syria will go is still an open question. But already it seems the U.S. will demand a fundamental shift in Syrian policy and not rest until that happens.

"The U.S. would be insane to go this far and back off now. I don't think that's Bush's intention anyway," said Gregory Copley, …