Culture Minister Ghazi Aridi described the postponement as 'a lie' and called for change for the better without dividing the region

By Khalil Fleihan
Daily Star staff
Wednesday, March 31, 2004

The Arab Summit will not be held before mid-May due to prior commitments of several Arab leaders, Foreign Minister Jean Obeid said.

Obeid's announcement came late Monday night after intensive contacts with his Syrian and Egyptian counterparts as well as  Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa.

Obeid informed President Emile Lahoud on Tuesday about the results of his contacts and the outcome of last week's Arab foreign ministers' meeting.

The Arab Summit was to have been kicked off earlier this week in Tunisia before the would-be-host country postponed it, citing differences over reform proposals in response to United States calls for greater freedoms in the region.

A meeting will be held in Egypt Wednesday to discuss a suitable date for the summit gathering. Participants are to include Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the host country and possibly Syria, according to Al-Jazeera reports.

Quoting Arab diplomatic sources, Al-Jazeera further reported that the Syrian President and the Bahraini King would join the meeting of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah in Sharm el-Sheikh.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher, however, said he did not know of any plans for Assad to join the Wednesday meeting of Mubarak and Prince Abdullah, but it was possible, according to Associated Press.

Meanwhile, Mubarak met Tuesday in Sharm el-Sheikh with Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk Sharaa in an attempt to bridge gaps ahead of the summit.

Lebanese Culture Minister Ghazi Aridi described the postponement of the summit due to reforms as "a lie" and called for change in the region without dividing it.

Speaking Tuesday during the opening of an exhibition at Beirut Arab University, Aridi asserted his support for reform in the Middle East but said change should not be imposed from the outside.

In a statement, the Lebanese Forces said they "regretted" the postponement of the summit. They urged Arab leaders to convene one as soon as possible "to preserve what is left of Arab unity."

The statement also stressed the need to hold a summit very soon in "a serious attempt to regain the initiative in light of a dangerous situation."

Agriculture Minister Ali Hassan Khalil commented simply that the postponement of the summit due to internal differences was "shameful."