The head of the Arab League made the comments after meeting with feuding Lebanese factions in his latest attempt to break the impasse, which has left the country without a President for more than five months.

"Time is passing but I think there is a chance which we can exploit to make serious progress," Moussa told reporters after a two-hour meeting with opposition aligned Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri. Moussa described his talks with Berri as extremely fruitful.

Moussa's latest visit comes two weeks after a similar trip by U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Welch during which he highlighted mounting Arab and international concern over Lebanon's failure to fill the top post.

Lebanon has been without a President since pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud's term ended on November 23 and parliament failed to elect a successor.

Berri, one of the chiefs of the opposition, called for dialogue with the majority in order to bring an end to the stalemate.

A 19th attempt to elect a president has been scheduled for May 13. A previous session, set for April 22, was postponed because of continuing disagreement.

The deeply divided parliament agreed on Army commander Gen Michel Suleiman as a consensus President but has failed to elect him because of differences over power sharing and the shape of the future Cabinet.

The U.S.-backed parliamentary majority has rejected the Syrian-backed opposition's demand for veto power over future government decisions. -With Agencies