Arab Summit Ready to Kick off Saturday

Source: Al Manar TV,28-03-2008
12 Arab Leaders arrive successfully Friday to Damascus to take part in the 20th Arab summit Saturday, with the absence of Lebanon as well as the low-key representation of Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt. Attending the summit will be the leaders of Syria, United Arab Emirates, Sudan, Yemen, the Palestinian Authority, Tunis, Algeria, Mauritania, the Union of the Comoros, Kuwait, Qatar and Libya. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia and Egypt will participate with a low-key representation as the leaders of Iraq, Morocco and Oman will not personally attend the summit. Bahrain, Somalia and Djibouti have not yet decided on the level of their representation in the summit.
The Lebanese unconstitutional government of Fouad Saniora decided last Tuesday to boycott the summit in protest at "Syria's role in obstructing the election of a president in the country."
On Thursday, Arab Foreign Ministers agreed on Thursday to make a full assessment of the Arab peace initiative and determine 'Israeli' obstacles standing in the way of its implementation.
The ministers also decided that there would be no speeches for the countries that would not take part in the summit.
Saniora was due to deliver a televised speech to the summit's opening session Saturday.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has backed the decision of Saudi King Abdullah and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak not to attend the March 29-30 Arab summit.
Saudi Arabia and Egypt are Arab heavyweights..." and I believe that the decision of the countries' leaders not to attend the Damascus summit is sound," Sarkozy said Thursday at a joint press conference with British PM Gordon Brown at the end of his 36-hour state visit to Britain. Brown, in his turn, said Britain, Europe and the United States were worried about the situation in Lebanon.