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| 20/07/2008 Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Mouallem is to visit Beirut on Monday, a Lebanese official said on Sunday, a week after the two neighbors agreed to establish diplomatic relations for the first time.
Mouallem is to deliver an invitation to Lebanese President Michel Sleiman from his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad to visit Damascus; a trip the Lebanese press said would take place within a week or 10 days.
Lebanon and Syria said last weekend that they had agreed to establish diplomatic relations, opening embassies in both capitals for the first time since their independence from French colonial rule more than 60 years ago.
"It is expected that the question of diplomatic relations will be raised during the visit. We hope it will mark a new step in Syrian-Lebanese ties," said Syria's Al-Watan newspaper, which is close to the government.
It said that during his visit Mouallem would discuss "ways of improving relations given the favorable circumstances with the election of a consensus president in Lebanon and the formation of a national unity government."
The plans to establish ties were announced at a summit in France to launch a Mediterranean Union which was attended by Assad, marking his return to the international stage after several years of diplomatic isolation. In a further sign of improving ties, Sarkozy announced he would visit Damascus in September.
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