Syria has said it would not allow arms inspections on its soil but would join forces with the world to rid the whole Middle East of weapons of mass destruction, in line with its proposal to the United Nations.
Washington accuses Syria of developing chemical weapons, a charge the Arab state denies.
Damascus asked the UN Security Council on Wednesday to help transform the whole region into a zone free of nuclear, biological or chemical weapons.
Asked by reporters in Cairo whether Syria would allow inspections, Foreign Minister Mr Farouq al-Shara said: "No ... After this initiative, this Syrian proposal [at the United Nations] ... Syria won't allow any inspection.
"It will only participate with its \ brothers and all of the states of the world in turning the Middle East into an area free of weapons of mass destruction." It was not clear if his remarks were a departure from Syria's previously stated position that it would only allow weapons inspections if they applied to all regional states, including Israel, which is widely believed to have nuclear arms.
Syria has neither signed nor ratified a 1993 international agreement banning chemical weapons, which Washington has recently accused Damascus of developing. Israel has signed the convention but never ratified it.
Syrian state radio said yesterday that the country was urging the world's leaders to work hard towards the "supreme goal" of a Middle East free of chemical, biological and nuclear arms.
A US State Department official in Washington said the Secretary of State, Mr Colin Powell, may travel to Syria to defuse tension between the countries.
Mr Shara adopted a moderate tone and repeated Syria's desire for dialogue with the United States, saying Mr Powell was "welcome" to visit Damascus.