Mubarak, Hamad tackle Arab issues, bilateral ties'

"The summit meeting between President Mubarak and King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain on Monday tackled the overall regional situation," said Egypt's Presidential spokesman, Suleiman Awwad.

In statements after the meeting, Awwad said that the talks started with a session grouping only President Mubarak and King Hamad and then the two countries delegations joined them.

The talks took up the Palestinian situation, the Iraqi file and the latest developments in Lebanon, Syria and Sudan, said the spokesman.

The two Arab leaders also discussed means of boosting bilateral cooperation in the various domains, he noted, adding that the value of Bahraini investments in Egypt hit as much as LE 3 billion.

As for the situation in Iraq, the two Arab leaders were unanimous that the Iraqi people should restore full stability and security in their country.

President Mubarak and King Hamad also underlined the necessity of implementing the Sharm El Sheikh understandings, said the spokesman.

The Presidential spokesman said the Crown Prince of Bahrain will visit Egypt by the middle of this month at the invitation of Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif for reviewing the details of the talks between the two leaders.

The spokesman said the two leaders had identical views on the need for restoring security and stability to Iraq adding the Iraqi people, having held latest elections,were now closer to the formation of their constitutional establishments, the government and the parliament which will draw up a permanent constitution and holding general elections by the end of this year in line with the Security Council resolution.

The two sides discussed the Palestinian cause and the progress of dialogue among Palestinian factions and efforts by President Mubarak for restructuring the Palestinian security services in cooperation with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

He said the two sides stressed the importance of observing Sharm el-Sheikh understandings and mutual commitments between the Palestinian and Israeli sides.

Answering a question on whether talks touched on the results of the latest summit in Algeria, ambassador Awwad said views considered the summit as a big step towards boosting the joint Arab action,developing the Arab League and solving the financial straits it suffers.

The two sides stressed the importance of enhancing solidarity among the Arab League members so that the league may turn into an effective instrument in facing up to the challenges, he said.