Al- Assad discusses with Gul bilateral relations, the situation n the region, stressed international legitimacy

Syria's President Bashar al-Assad on Saturday in Damascus received the Turkish prime minister Abdullah Gul and members of the accompanying delegation.

The meeting was attended by the Syrian Prime minister Muhammad Mustafa Miro, the deputy Premier and foreign minister Farouk al-Shara and the Turkish ambassador in Damascus.

Talks dealt with historical relations between the two countries, as well as the situation in the region and the threats against Iraq. The two sides agreed on the need that all sides concerned should work relentlessly to ward off the ghost of war from Iraq because the war against Iraq "might open the box of evils."

The two sides also stressed the great importance they give to the Iraqi territorial integrity. They consider that it is the duty of the countries of the region to work jointly and to coordinate in order to avoid dangers that might be inflicted in the region, especially as peoples of this region will be the one who will suffer the results of what will happen to any of its states.

The two sides also stressed historical relations linking between Syria and Turkey and the interests of the two sides to push these relations to a remarkable level in all walks.

President al-Assad stressed that the thing wanted from Iraq "today is to complete the inspection works and to return back to the UN in the hope that all efforts will be put together to ward off the ghost of wars and its consequences from the region, to concentrate efforts on the security of people and their stability and to achieve prosperity as well as solve hindering conflicts on the ground of international legitimacy and UN resolutions."

It was agreed to find out prompt mechanism for coordination between the two countries on issues debated during the meeting.

During his visit to Damascus, Prime Minister Gul and his companions visited several archaeological sites in Damascus including the Umayyad Mosque, Salah Eddine al-Ayoubi tom and al-Tekeyah al-Suleimaneyah.

On Saturday evening Gul left Damascus following a short visit to Syria.

In a pre-departure statement to SANA, Gul described the results of his visit to Damascus as constructive and fruitful. He said that view points were identical on that there should be no war and "we have to exert efforts to halt a war as such."

Gul added "we have exchanged views during this visit with high ranking Syrian officials. Hopefully, results of this successful and fruitful visit will yield in the very near future." Upon his arrival back home in Ankara Premier Gul added that discussions with the Syrian officials dealt with bilateral relations and means of developing joint cooperation relations at all levels. He commended the warm hospitality he and his companions received during their visit to Damascus.