Preliminary meetings and main files for the Arab summit

Preparatory meetings started in Algeria for the 17th Arab summit with meetings at the levels of representatives and ambassadors at the Arab League.

The participants discussed the summit agenda which will be debated by the foreign ministers before it will be submitted to the Arab leaders taking part in the summit.

The secretary general of the Arab League (AL), Amr Moussa, who arrived in Algiers on Wednesday, said that reforms and development in the Arab world and the Arab League will be the main topic for the summit.

But he explained that Syria and Lebanon have not officially requested to enroll the Syrian- Lebanese file on the summit's agenda. However, one official at the AL said that despite that, this issue will be present at the summit.

However, the summit's meeting will focus on: peace in the Middle East on the background of reactivating the Arab peace initiative, supporting Iraq, assessing reforms the Arab states vowed to carry out during the recent Arab summit in Tunisia in 2004.

The Arab summit will also discuss reform of the AL, especially the foundation of an Arab parliament and new measures to be introduced for voting on the summit's resolutions as well as a permanent follow up commission for resolutions adopted by Arab summits.