From PRI, Public Radio International and KCRW Santa Monica, this is To the Point.

America's tangled diplomacy in the Middle East.

Hello again, I'm Aron Alney, and this is To the Point from Public Radio International.

A daily look at the issues, Americans care about most.

Condoleezza Rice met with Syria's foreign minister today, the most senior diplomatic contact between the

countries in years. U.S. military officials say Syria has cut the flow of fighters into Iraq.

Rice may also meet her Iranian counterpart, but there are new problems with Saudi Arabia.

On to the point, will King Abdullah help Iraq rebuild by forgiving debts racked up by Saddam Hussein?

Is America's most important Arab ally trying to distance itself from U.S. interests in the Middle East?

On reporter's notebook later on,

The Queen comes back to the colonies.

First, here's the news.

Support for To the Point comes from subscribers of KCRW Santa Monica and from the Public Radio International Program Fund,

whose contributors include the Ford Foundation

and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

Hello again, Mormon Ali, back with To the Point. In Egypt, for a meeting on Iraq's future,

Condoleezza Rice met with her Syrian counterpart today in a diplomatic breakthrough. Will Iran be next?

On To the Point, what about America's most important Arab ally? Will Saudi Arabia help the

government of Iraq or distance

itself from U.S. interests in the Middle East? On reporter's notebook, Queen Elizabeth comes back to

Jamestown. We'll talk about the first British colony, the myths, and the history. First, this news

update. After failing to override the President's Iraq spending veto, the Democrats have blinked

...