Al-Shara conveyed a Syrian message to Lahoud, held a press conference

Syria's Foreign Minister, Farouk Al-Shara, on Wednesday held a press conference in Beirut during which he talked about his yesterday's visit to Lebanon.

Al-Shara pointed out that he conveyed a message from President Bashar Al-Assad to the Lebanese President Emile Lahoud on the contacts and visits made between Syria and a number of Arab and foreign capitals.

Al-Shara indicated that the latest developments have impact on the region "particularly the Israeli aggression against the unarmed Palestinian people and the military build up which targets Iraq."

The foreign minister made it clear that the aim of Syria's contacts and visits is to prevent any war against Iraq and on the region and to move forward for a peaceful solution to the Iraqi issue on the bases of the international law particularly the UN Security Council resolution 1441.

"We in Syria," al-Shara said, "believe that reaching a unified stance regarding the said points is a great achievement particularly where some war seekers keep repeating that war will start tomorrow or the day After."

Regarding Turkey's stand on averting a war and its exerted efforts with the Arab neighbors to prevent a war, he said that this "is a very positive thing which is observed by the Arab and Muslim public with a great satisfaction."

Al-Shara stressed that the Istanbul meeting of key Middle East states would send a message that underlines the importance of the international law and rejects all kinds of aggression.

Following the press conference, Minister Shara left Beirut for Istanbul to attend the ministerial meeting of Iraq's neighboring states due to be held in Istanbul today.