Report: Attempts to convene the meetings of the Damascus Declaration
Regional, Politics, 3/7/2000

The Kuwaiti daily al-Anbaa on Monday quoted Egyptian political sources in Cairo as asserting that the Egyptian Foreign Ministry had refused a proposal made by Syria and certain countries among the Damascus Declaration signatory states on the possibility of convening the next session of the declaration's member states on the sidelines of the meetings of the Arab League Council, due to start its work on Saturday.

The sources added that several Egyptian contacts were held between the officials at the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, the Syrian Foreign Ministry and foreign ministry officials in the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council. The sources added that Egypt had set its stand on the need to separate convening the meeting of the 17th session of the declaration's signatory states from the meeting of the AL council and the need to convene this meeting (of the declaration states), separately in Cairo and for two days as scheduled.

The sources attributed the reasons behind Egypt's refusal to convene this meeting to that of "time limits," and to several substantial questions the Beirut meeting will discuss, especially the question of backing Lebanon and the peace process.

The Kuwaiti paper quoted sources of the AL as saying that current contacts are being made to convene a coordination meeting between the foreign ministers of Egypt, Syria and Saudi Arabia, just one day before the meeting of the Arab foreign ministers and that the three foreign ministers will discuss in this meeting the tripartite coordination efforts and steps and defining their united stances and attitudes towards issues to be discussed by the Arab ministers and the importance of declaring set positions for the peace process and backing for the Syrian and Lebanese tracks.

Previous Stories:
  Cairo invites Damascus Declaration FM s for meeting   (1/4/2000)
  Moussa: The Arab conditions suffer   (10/22/1999)
  Saudi Arabia asserts importance of joint work to achieve peace   (9/3/1999)

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