SOUTHERN SHUNEH, Jordan (AP) - Israel’s president urged Syria Sunday to open direct peace talks, saying any gesture by the Damascus government would help clear the air between the two arch enemies.

President Shimon Peres, a Nobel Peace Prize winner whose office is largely ceremonial, also told reporters in Jordan that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would abide by agreements signed by his predecessors, including a U.S.-backed Mideast peace plan calling for a two-state solution to the conflict with Palestinians.

Peres said some had suggested Syrian President Bashar Assad and Netanyahu meet and start talking directly.

"The Syrians should be ready to talk. If President Assad wants peace, why is he shy?" he said after participating in an international economic meeting sponsored by the Geneva-based World Economic Forum. "We suggested many times direct talks," Peres added. "He thinks direct talks are a prize to Israel. It’s not a prize. It’s normal."