US attempts to hold fifth economic conference for Middle East and North Africa

News repeated in economic circles in the Middle East area says that Washington started confidential and private consultations with the Arab states to hold the fifth economic conference for the Middle Eastern countries and North Africa in one of these countries before the end of 1998 and that Tunis is nominated to host the conference.

Sources in the Egyptian Foreign Ministry confirmed the current crisis situation in the talks over convening a conference in the area.

The source added that the circumstances accompanying convening the Doha conference last year are still present in Arab minds, as none of the Arab states' foreign ministers attended the conference, and the participants in the conference did not succeed in determining the date or location for convening the next conference.

In addition, Doha was targeted for Arab criticism for hosting the conference, to which Israeli was invited, at a time when the peace process was foundering.