Albright wraps it up in Cairo, Abdel Meguid in Iraq today

US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright arrived in Cairo within her tour of the Middle East region which aims to muster international and Arab support for the US position against Iraq.

Secretary Albright put a positive tone on her regional tour saying that she got clear support for a diplomatic solution from the many Arab states and that the Arab states support the demand for compliance with UN resolutions, adding that Iraq will be to blame for the consequences of not complying with such resolutions.

Albright met with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in order to convince Cairo to support the idea of a military strike against Iraq or at least to decrease the negative implications of that strike in case the US carries it out in light of the role of Egyptian diplomacy in the region.

Diplomatic sources in Cairo said Cairo informed Albright formally that it rejects using force against Iraq, and that it does not want the problem between the UN and Iraq to be solved through a military strike, as it hopes that this crisis will be solved through the diplomatic means.

Mubarak had phone coversations with the Saudi Crown Prince Abdallah Bin Abdel Aziz, Tunisian President Zein Al Abedin Bin Ali, Libyan President Moammar Gaddafi, Moroccan Monarch King Hassan II, UAE President Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, Kuwaiti President Prince Jaber Al Ahmed Al Sobah, Omani President Sultan Qaboos Bin Said, the Emir of Qatar Hamad Bin Khalifa, and the Emir of Bahrain Eissa Bin Salman Al Khalifa.

The Egyptian President asked the secretary general of the Arab League, Esmat Abdel Meguid, to carry a message to Iraq which includes a call for the Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to back away from his position, as the situation is very dangerous and will cause him and the Iraqi people to suffer.

Abdel Meguid's visit comes at the request of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, as he is the head of the Arab Summit which was held in Cairo in June 1996.

Albright will conclude her tour of the region in Cairo. Albright met with Israeli and Palestinian officials, the Prince of Kuwait, Bahraini officials, and top officials in Saudi Arabia, most importantly Crown Prince Abdallah Bin Abdel Aziz.

Diplomatic sources mentioned that during her visits in the Gulf, Albright tried to lessen any negative reactions should the US strike against Iraq and to offer promises to put pressure on Iraq to move the peace process and to implement the Oslo accord.