MANAMA: Egypt and Gulf states fear an upcoming Arab summit could be scuppered if Lebanon fails to begin resolving its political crisis by naming a new president, a senior Bahraini official said on Monday.
Egypt and the Gulf states see it necessary to resolve the question of the empty presidential post in Lebanon before the summit, the official, who declined to be named, told AFP after a meeting in Manama between Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Bahrain s King Hamad.
Egypt and Gulf states believe failure to resolve this question could contribute to the failure of the summit , the official added.
Mubarak arrived in Bahrain on Monday from neighboring Saudi Arabia where he discussed with King Abdullah ways to resolve Lebanon s 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.
The Arab summit is due to take place in Syria next month amid strains between Riyadh and Damascus over Lebanon s presidential summit.
Arab League chief Amr Moussa left Lebanon on Monday having failed in a new mediation bid to break the deadlock.
An Arab initiative calls for the election of army chief General Michel Sleiman as consensus president, the formation of a national unity government in which no single party has veto power, and a new electoral law.
Despite agreement on Sleiman, feuding Lebanese politicians have failed to agree on power-sharing in a future government.
Arab analysts and media reports have suggested that Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab countries could boycott the Damascus summit or send low-level delegates. -AFP
