Solana to Visit Beirut
EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana will start a high-profile diplomatic tour through the Middle East on Tuesday in a bid to help bolster the ceasefire in Gaza, his office said.
He will first travel to Syria, then to Lebanon and Egypt on Wednesday.
He is to visit Israel on Thursday to meet top officials including Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Likud party chairman Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been asked to form a new government following elections.
He will finish off the tour by traveling to the Palestinian territories on Friday and Saturday, where he is due to visit Gaza and meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and U.S. special envoy George Mitchell.
Solana will take part in an international conference next week on the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip to be held in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh on March 2, his office added.