Arab FMs will meet to discuss Syria

Arab foreign ministers are poised to hold an extraordinary meeting here on June 5 to discuss the Syrian crisis, Kuwait's Permanent Representative at the Arab League Jamal Al-Ghunaim said on Monday. The meeting will come just a few days of an international conference due in Geneva next month in an effort to find a political solution to the Syrian predicament, he told KUNA. The Arab foreign ministerial meeting is scheduled to focus on a concerted Arab position on a peaceful transition in Syria and the fulfillment of the expectations and hopes of the Syrian people, Al-Ghunaim added. During the meeting, Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem Al-Thani, who is the head of the Arab ministerial committee on Syria, and Secretary General of the Arab League Nabil Al-Araby are expected to present a report on the outcomes of their contacts and consultations with the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and UN-Arab Envoy for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi on the planned Geneva II Conference on Syria, the Kuwaiti diplomat said. On the same subject, Deputy Secretary General of the Arab League Ahmad bin Helli said the extraordinary meeting of Arab foreign ministers, presided by Egypt, will mainly revolve around the volatile Syrian situation, involvement of Lebanon's Hezbollah in Syria and an Arab vision for the Geneva II Conference on Syria. The gathering will be preceded by a preparatory meeting of Arab permanent delegates on the same day, he pointed out. The Arab foreign ministers will also discuss the serious reflections of the Syrian cul-de-sac on Lebanon's security and stability, the Arab League's official added.