Washington, Apr 17: US Secretary of State Colin Powell may travel to Syria for talks on defusing new tensions between the two countries in the wake of a US-led military operation that toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, a State Department official has said. "He said he expects that he might travel, but he doesn't have a scheduled trip yet," the official said of Powell. The official, who spoke to a news agency on condition of anonymity, gave no indication when a formal announcement, if any, would be made. Syria has been accused of smuggling war material into Iraq, allowing foreign Islamic fighters, including members of Hezbollah, to cross its borders, and providing aid and comfort to former Saddam associates fleeing Baghdad as US troops establish control over the country. On Monday, US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Syria had conducted a chemical weapons test during the last 12 to 15 months, while Powell raised the possibility of diplomatic and economic sanctions against the west Asian nation. The absence of an official announcement notwithstanding, the Syrian ambassador to the United States, Rostom al-Zoubi, welcomed the possibility of the US secretary of state undertaking a diplomatic mission to Damascus. "It is good news and it's a good step in the right direction because direct dialogue between us and the United States is better than to accuse from a far distance," said Zoubi, appearing on a programme on a private TV channel. Bureau Report