LEBANON: Arab foreign ministers begin consultations today on the resolutions and final declaration of the Arab League summit which convenes on Wednesday.
Their object is to make certain unity is maintained at the summit, already heralded as "historic" by regional commentators.
It is deemed "historic" because the Arabs are expected to extend support to the peace plan proposed by Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah. He initially called for "full normalisation" by the Arabs in exchange for "full withdrawal" by Israel from territories occupied in 1967.
The elaborated proposal now includes three demands: a Palestinian state with its capital in East Jerusalem the city to be redivided to give the Palestinians control of Muslim and Christian quarters and holy sites and the Israelis sovereignty over Jewish areas and religious sites, and a "just solution" for Palestinian refugees.
The ministers will examine drafts of the Saudi peace initiative and a resolution supporting the Palestinian uprising prepared by colleagues from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Syria and Jordan under the auspices of the Arab League Secretary General, Mr Amr Moussa.
The ministers are also likely to review a text calling upon Iraq to allow the UN to resume inspection of its arms facilities to verify that Baghdad has not manufactured weapons of mass destruction.
Finally economy ministers will present a proposal for the creation of an Arab common market by 2005.
Of the 22 Arab rulers, three have called off due to illness - Saudi King Fahd, Kuwait's Sheikh Sabah and Sheikh Zayed of the United Arab Emirates.
President Saddam Hussein of Iraq cannot attend for security reasons but the Libyan leader, Col Muammar Gadafy, may attend.
It is not clear whether Mr Yasser Arafat will be present. Israel has barred him from travelling unless he imposes a ceasefire on Palestinian militants, arrests resistance leaders and collects arms.
In the view of the London-based pan-Arab daily, al-Hayat, Israel has set too high a price for his participation. Arab analysts argue that Mr Arafat should be the "present absentee", his black and white Arab headdress draped over his empty chair. Arafat imprisoned is a far more potent and poignant figure than Arafat in the conference chamber, they say.
Mr Moussa reacted to an attempt by the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Ariel Sharon, to attend by saying that if he came to Beirut, "we would have to consider if we could allow him to return" to Israel.
Mr Sharon is under indictment in Lebanon for war crimes allegedly committed during his 1982 invasion of the country.
Mr Moussa observed that the aim of the summit was to counter attempts to impose "Israel's views on the Arab world" with a clear Arab formula for peace.
The Lebanese Prime Minister, Mr Rafik al-Hariri said the aim of the proposal was to appeal directly to the Israeil people. On Saturday Crown Prince Abdullah said he had put forward his proposal "to test how serious [the Israelis] are" about peace.
