President Bashar al-Assad on Sunday held talks with Libyan leader Col. Muammar Gaddafi in Tripoli on the latest developments in the Arab arena and the ongoing preparations for the upcoming Arab summit due to be held in Tripoli next March.

President al-Assad and Col. Gaddafi asserted that the challenges facing the Arab nation, particularly the unjust siege imposed by the Israeli occupation authorities on Gaza Strip, the obstacles placed by Israel in the way of achieving peace in the region and the latest developments in the Middle East urge all the Arab countries to overcome their differences and act in solidarity to activate joint Arab action and help the next Arab summit come up with outcomes in the interest of  the Arab nations.

The situations in the occupied Palestinian territories and the divisions among the Palestinian factions were also discussed as both sides agreed on the necessity of achieving the Palestinian national reconciliation to help further strengthen the Arab stance in the face of Israeli arbitrary hostile exercises against the Palestinians.

Talks also dealt with the outstanding bilateral relations between the two sides, with both leaders affirming their relentless efforts to further consolidate these relations in various domains, especially in the political and economic spheres for the best interest of the brotherly people in Syria and Libya.

In the same context, president al-Assad and Col. Gaddafi agreed on forming a joint higher strategic council to push forward the hoped- for bilateral relations in different aspects. The latest regional and international developments were also on the table.

The meeting was attended from the Syrian side by Foreign Minister Waild al-Moallem, Presidential Political and Media Adviser Buthaina Shaaban and the Syrian Ambassador to Libya.

Attending from the Libyan side were Member of Libyan Revolutionary Command Council Major General Mustafa Mohammed al-Kharroubi, and Secretary to Libya's People Committee for Foreign Liaison Mousa Kusa.

Later, Col. Gaddafi held a dinner banquet in honor of President al-Assad, attended by members of the two delegations..