"Straw is leaving on Sunday night for Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia," a Foreign Office spokesman told AFP, confirming that Straw would visit the states in that order before heading to Athens on Wednesday for an EU enlargment summit.

Confirmation of the trip came as the Syrian news agency Sana said that Straw had said in a telephone call to Syrian Foreign Minister Faruq al-Shareh on Friday that Britain does not support strong accusations made by the United States against Syria.

The Foreign Office confirmed the phone call but not its content.

Straw warned Syria on Thursday against sheltering what remains of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's regime and urged the country to cooperate with US-led forces in Iraq.

Straw told parliament that he was sending foreign office minister Mike O'Brien to Syria and Iran to discuss these countries' role in Iraq's post-war reconstruction.

"We look to Syria to end any and all assistance to the Iraqi regime and to cooperate fully with the people of Iraq and with the coalition forces," Straw said.

Well before the Iraq war began on March 20, British Prime Minister Tony Blair's government was reaching out diplomatically to Syria and to Iran despite their pariah status with US President George W. Bush's administration.

US lawmakers said Thursday they would propose legislation to hold Syria accountable for supporting terrorism and pursuing nuclear, biological and chemical weapons.

US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has accused Damascus of secretly shipping military aid to Iraq and helping senior Iraqi leaders flee. Washington also accuses Syria of pursuing banned nuclear, biological and chemical weapons and Damascus is on the US list of regimes supporting terrorism.

During his diplomatic tour, Straw will also meet with Jay Garner, the US interim administrator for Iraq, who is currently in Kuwait.

SPACE.WIRE