Reuters:

DAMASCUS (Reuters) – Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told his ruling Baath Party congress on Monday to ignore foreign pressure in drafting reforms he said should focus on improving the economy and combating corruption.
But Assad set out no far-reaching initiatives in his speech to the opening session of the Baath’s first major congress in five years and made clear the party that has ruled Syria for four decades was not ready to give up its dominant role.