By Susan Cornwell

WASHINGTON, April 9 (Reuters) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has invited U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and others in an American delegation that met him in Damascus last week to make a return visit, Rep. Tom Lantos, senior lawmaker who was on the trip, said on Monday.

"I have every intention of going back," Lantos, California Democrat and chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told Reuters, insisting that he would not bow to the "ostrich policy" of the Bush administration by refusing to communicate with those with whom Washington disagrees.

The foray to Damascus by a bipartisan delegation led by Pelosi drew strong reprimands from the White House, which has sought to isolate Assad. Washington accuses Syria of sponsoring terrorism and allowing suicide bombers and fighters to cross its desert border into Iraq.

President George W. Bush said Pelosi's visit sent "mixed signals" to Syria, Vice President Dick Cheney accused her of "bad behavior," and Republicans in Congress asserted that she was trying to embarrass Bush.

But Lantos said Pelosi had represented U.S. interests "magnificently," adding: "I think the administration may be embarrassed by its own unwillingness to engage in dialogue.

"I vastly prefer Nancy Pelosi's approach to the Middle East to Cheney's," Lantos said in a telephone interview.

Pelosi, a California Democrat who met Assad on Wednesday, was the most senior U.S. official to visit Syria in more than two years. Several other American lawmakers have traveled to Syria recently, including some Republicans -- one of whom, Rep. David Hobson of Ohio, was with Pelosi.

"He (Assad) strongly encouraged the continuation of the dialogue. He invited the speaker and the rest of the delegation to return," Lantos said. He could not say whether Pelosi would return, but "I would suspect her answer would be yes."

The United States withdrew its ambassador from Syria shortly after the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri in February 2005. Many Lebanese blame Syria for the killing. Damascus denies involvement.

But Lantos, a Hungarian-born Jew who survived the Holocaust, said normal U.S. diplomatic relations with Syria are possible.

He recalled that just a few years ago the United States had "zero" diplomatic relations with Libya, and now the two countries share full diplomatic ties. These improved dramatically after Tripoli's 2003 decision to give up weapons of mass destruction.

"Syria in many ways is more developed and there are more historic ties," Lantos said, "and I fully anticipate that sooner or later there will be a resumption of full diplomatic relations."

Syria will need to do several things, he said. These would include closing its border with Iraq; closing the border with Lebanon to arms shipments by Hezbollah; facilitating the work of the United Nations investigation into Hariri's assassination; releasing political prisoners and closing headquarters of "terrorist" groups.

As for whether Syria should resume talks with Israel, "that is between the two of them," Lantos said, but "I certainly think that sooner or later that will happen."

During Pelosi's visit, Assad said Syria was ready to resume talks with Israel based on an Arab peace plan calling for Israeli withdrawal from all Arab land for peace.

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