Transcript: Syrian president Bashar Assad

Editor's note: The following is a transcript of Ann Curry's interview with Syrian President Bashar Assad. Due to transcription issues towards the end of the interview, the best source for Assad's words is the video link of the complete interview.

ANN CURRY, NBC NEWS: Mr. President, the highest level meeting between US and Syria was held just last week.  Is it a reakthrough?

BASHAR ASSAD: It's too early say it's a breakthrough or to judge it.  So far we haven't seen any action related to this meeting.  This administration only talk about Iraq and then Iraq only a lot about the borders.  The problems is more complicated.  More problems are linked together.

If you want to talk about Iraq, you have to talk about the relation with the United States.  When our minister told us that it has enormous-- diplomatic relations and political cooperation.

We cannot talk about security while you have bad political relations.  So this is what she heard.  And we're still waiting to see how they want to start to... We are ready for any kind-- kind of cooperation.  But we need to know step by step what the United States is going to do.

CURRY: You must hear more, you're saying, from the US.  You're saying it is too early to say that this is a breakthrough.  Given, Mr. President, the degree of suffering at this time in our history, is that good enough?  This non-communication?  This non-connection?  Non-dialogue?

BASHAR ASSAD: Well, if you don't have dialogue and connection and communication and cooperation, this is bad relations in the world.

CURRY: You're saying it's not good enough.

BASHAR ASSAD: It's not good-- it's not good at all not to have cooperation with any country.  How United States has a great power and as country who is involved directly in the situation in Iraq that's going to affect the whole situation.  So for our interests, it's better to have good cooperation.

But you cannot have any cooperation.  You need criteria.  And you need to set the goals.  And you need to set the means...

CURRY: Well, let's talk about the criteria.  The secretary of state said to your foreign minister that there is a link between Syria stopping foreign fighters from crossing the border into Iraq and a good relationship with the United States.

BASHAR ASSAD: The funny thing about this administration and this official, when they came to see (UNINTEL), they started talking about they cannot control as United States controls their border with Mexico.  But we have to seal the border with Iraq.  The problem is political.  The problem is political...

And for our (plan) to control the border, we will not do it for the United States.  We'll do it for ourselves.  When you have chaos, you will have loose borders.  Because if you want to control the border, you control them both sides, not only from one side.  

CURRY: What are you doing-- what is Syria doing from its side of the border to stop the flow of foreign fighters into Iraq?

BASHAR ASSAD: If you go to the border, you see there's a Syrian army.  And it's been there since '75.  It's nothing new.  And we--

BASHAR ASSAD: And we have increased the number of soldiers on that border since the invasion of Iraq because of the both  directions.  But to control the border, you don't usually control them on the border.  You control them through cooperation between two governments...

They need intelligence cooperation.  And we need other (kinds) of cooperation.  We don't have any partner to cooperate with regarding this issue.

CURRY: You want the U.S. to cooperate with you regarding intelligence on stopping foreign fighters from going into Iraq.

BASHAR ASSAD: That's what we told them in 2004, in September 2004, there was a delegation headed by William Burns and other offshoots from the army and from the CIA.  And we told them lets make cooperation between Syria, the United States and Europe regarding this issue. They left. They didn't come back.  And we're still waiting.

CURRY: You're saying for you to strengthen your efforts, you need US cooperation, intelligence cooperation?

BASHAR ASSAD: No, it starts with the political.

CURRY:  Political cooperation.

BASHAR ASSAD: We cannot have intelligence cooperation while they threaten Syria from time to time.  And they do things against Syria that are aggressive.  This is from one side. The second aspect of the issue, the United States doesn't have experience in fighting terrorism.

Well, we have.  We have a long time ago before many countries in this-- world for the last-- three decades.  So they cannot be in the lead.  They cannot lead this process.  They have not information, your intelligence.  They don't have the knowledge.  We have the knowledge.  And the issue of knowledge and culture.

CURRY: You're suggesting that the US has been arrogant in how it's been dealing with this problem.

BASHAR ASSAD: Maybe there's not a lack of knowledge but lack of knowledge about how to fight the terrorists.

CURRY: And you say you have this knowledge?

BASHAR ASSAD: Definitely.  From experience.

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