The Arab League Secretary General will discuss in Moscow the situation in the Middle East

In an interview with RIA Novosti on the upcoming visit of the Secretary General of the League of Arab States (LAS) Amr Moussa to Russia on December 9th-11th, the Russian Foreign Ministry official spokesperson Alexander Yakovenko announced that during the visit the sides would discuss in detail the situation in the Middle East and prospects for its development.

According to Yakovenko, Russia has maintained mutually enriching political dialogue with the LAS leadership for a long time. It's the first visit of Amr Moussa, an Arab political leader highly respected in the world community, in this capacity to Russia, and it's aimed at strengthening the progress in the development of the relations between Russia and Arab World countries.

Yakovenko said that Russia is interested not only in improving the political dialogue, but also in developing trade, scientific, technological, investment and cultural ties in the future.

Speaking about the major topics of discussion during the visit, the Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson emphasized that the sides "will pay special attention to the situation around Iraq, particularly in the context of ongoing UNMOVIC and IAEA inspections on Iraqi territory".

Yakovenko underlined that "it's imperative that the activities aimed at closing Iraqi dossiers on WMD are not undermined by the efforts to topple the existing Iraqi regime".

"The UN Charter does not give anyone such a mandate; therefore, any attempt to receive the UN "blessing" for removal of legitimate leadership in Iraq would definitely blemish the UN image in the world", the Russian diplomat specifically pointed out.

Another important topic of discussions will be the situation in the Palestine territories, primarily - a collective effort to find an exit from the existing "vicious circle of violence" and start moving towards a just and comprehensive settlement of the situation according to the "road map" that is in its final stages of development by the international intermediaries, including Russia, the USA, the EU, and the UN.

The sides will also discuss cooperation between Russia and LAS countries in the fight against international terrorism.

Other general issues will include the ways and methods of expanding and diversifying Russian-Arab relations in different spheres; the prospects for using the LAS structures and mechanisms in order to promote the partnership between its member-countries and Russia; the possible involvement of Russian organizations, including representatives of the private sector, in the development of various all-Arab and sub-regional projects, concluded Yakovenko.