Lebanon missing a 'golden opportunity' by boycotting Arab Summit

Damascus: Lebanon missed a “golden opportunity'' by deciding to boycott the 20th Arab Summit on Saturday, according to the Syrian foreign minister.

Walid Al Moualem told newsmen at the Ebla Al Cham Palace Hotel in Damascus that those who thought the decision of the Lebanese government came from within its members did not know anything about Lebanon and the golden opportunity being lost by the Lebanese government to be represented here is regretted.

“They could have come here to present their case in the Arab summit and discuss it with the Arab leaders including President Assad,'' Al Moualem said.

However, Al Moualem declined to criticize Egypt for lowering its representation to the summit to the level of a state minister and said the issue of how countries are represented in the meeting is a jurisdictional decision and Syria has nothing to do with it.

Husam Zaki, Spokesman of Egyptian Foreign Ministry told reporters that President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt will not attend the summit for reason he said was “known for all Arabs''.

“Egypt will not boycott the meeting and will be represented by the State Minister Moufed Mahmoud Shehab, Sate Minister of Legal Affairs and Parliamentary Councils,'' Zaki said.

President Mubarak said earlier that the absence of a Lebanese president from the Damascus Summit is not accepted by Egypt and called on Syria to use its influence with the Lebanese opposition to facilitate the election of a new president in Lebanon, a post that became vacant since November 24th 2007.

Saudi Arabia announced earlier that its deputy at the League of the Arab Countries Abdul Aziz Al Qattan will be representing the kingdom at the summit. Officially Saudi Arabia is chairing the Arab Summit since it was held in Riyadh in March 2007.

Protocol wise, the Saudi representative has to hand over the chairmanship to President Bashar Al Assad at the opening session of the 20th Ordinary Arab Summit in Damascus.

Sources from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Gulf News that President Assad will assume the chairmanship of the summit at the beginning of the opening session with no need of a protocol hand over from Saudi Arabia.

Al Moualem blamed the US for sabotaging the summit in Damascus because it is the only Arab meeting that has no influence on its agenda and he hoped that the summit will be turning point in Arab cooperation and joint work efforts.

“I am pessimistic about the future of the Arab joint work and summit which will discuss crucial issue will represent a turning point in modern history of Arab people,'' he said.

He said the visits of the American officials to the region starting with the presidential visit of [George W.] Bush that was followed recently with his vice President [Dick] Cheney and the current visit of State Secretary [Condoleezza] Rice is an evident of the pressure being exerted by the US to fail the Summit, adding that Syria is committed to ensure the success of the event.

Al Moualem hinted at the possibility of amending the Arab Peace initiative which was adopted by the Arab leaders in their summit in Beirut in 2002 based on King Abdullah initiative.

He said the world should distinguish between the Arab Peace Strategy which is not going to change and with the Arab peace initiative which was not recognized or accepted by Israel. “The summit will look into other effective tools to force Israel to accept peace with Arabs,'' he said.