Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, at the head of an economic delegation, arrived in Kuwait on January 22. During his stay, he met with Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Jaber al-Ahmad al-Sabah and other high-ranking officials of that country.

Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah and Arab League Secretary General Amr Mussa were also visiting Kuwait at the same time.

Although one of the reasons that the high-ranking Arab officials traveled to Kuwait was to call on the Emir, who had returned to his country after three months of medical treatment in London, it seems that the general state of the Arab world and issues related to Palestine and Afghanistan also inspired the Arab countries to hold political consultations.

The visit to Syria by the Kuwaiti state minister for foreign affairs and the visits to the UAE by Oman's Sultan Qaboos and the Qatari Emir, and the efforts of Mussa and the emir of Bahrain to settle tension in Iraq's relations with Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are part of the consultations being conducted by Arab countries in order to adopt a common policy to solve their problems.

Lebanon is preparing to turn into the axis of regional developments by hosting the upcoming Arab summit in Beirut. The summit will be a ray of hope for Arab states where they can adopt a common stance. The Zionist regime's attacks against cities ruled by the Palestinian Authority, the deep concern of the member states of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (PGCC) over the future plans of the U.S. under the pretext of fighting terrorism, and the possibility that the U.S. may attack Iraq are among the factors causing Arab states to seek a common position.

At this sensitive juncture, the pivotal role of PGCC members Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, and also the position of Lebanon and Syria in the anti-Israeli front are of great importance.

According to political analysts, the Arab countries' lack of an effective and practical common stance has led to further instability in the Middle East. They believe that this disunity is the reason why these countries have not been able to make use of their political and economic levers to confront the U.S.-Zionist alliance.

If the Arab consultations lead to unity and the adoption of a common position on the most important issues prevailing in the Middle East, there is the possibility that Arab states will be better able to deal with the expansionist policies of the Zionist regime and force the U.S. to pay attention to the views of Arab states and adopt a more even-handed approach in the Middle East.