RIYADH: President Hosni Mubarak discussed with Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah on Sunday ways to solve Lebanon’s political crisis, state media reported.
They held talks in Riyadh on “the current crisis in Lebanon and the Arab efforts to solve it, the official SPA news agency said.
SPA added the pair also discussed the “continuing Israeli attacks on the Palestinian people and the need to preserve the security and territorial integrity of Iraq.
An Arab diplomat in Riyadh told AFP that Jordan’s King Abdullah II would also visit Saudi Arabia on Wednesday for talks on the Arab summit.
Saudi Arabia, which hosted the annual summit in 2007, has not yet received a formal invitation from Syria to attend the March 29-30 forum amid tensions between the two countries over Lebanon’s presidential crisis.
Lebanon has been without a president since November amid feuding between a majority backed by the West and several Arab states and an opposition supported by Syria and Iran.
“There is a crisis in ties with the Syrian government, with Lebanon the main reason, a Saudi official told AFP, asking not to be named.
“Damascus has not joined in efforts, including the Arab initiative, to elect a consensus president, the official said.
Arab analysts and media have suggested that Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab countries may boycott the Damascus summit or send low-level delegates. -AFP
