Meeting Of Regional Initiative On Iraq Starts In Cairo

CAIRO - Meeting of the Regional Initiative on Iraq started in Egyptian capital Cairo on Wednesday.
Besides Turkish Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul, foreign ministers of Syria, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Jordan and Egypt attended the meeting.
Sources told the A.A correspondent that Turkey would give the message that Iraq's territorial integrity, political unity and sovereignty should be preserved and that Iraq should not be a threat for its neighbors.
Meanwhile, Gul told reporters prior to the meeting, ''the Turkish side will reiterate its previous messages to assist Iraq to assure its territorial integrity, political unity and stability.''
Diplomatic sources said that all Iraq's neighbors were in favor of the establishment of law and order in Iraq, in the possible shortest period.
The foreign ministers of Iraq's neighbors and Egypt have met five times since the fall of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's regime last year, to discuss attempts to stabilize the country.
Iraqi interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi is expected to address the meeting, which is the first to be held since the coalition forces handed over sovereignty to an interim government in Iraq on June 28, 2004.
(UK-ULG) 21.07.2004