Countries neighbouring Iraq are holding talks in the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh to discuss how to influence the post-war situation in the region.
The talks - the first such meeting since the start of the war - aim to address the reconstruction of Iraq and the issue of how to deal with a future US-led administration in Baghdad.
The emergency meeting brings together the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Syria, Jordan, Turkey and Iran, in addition to Egypt and Bahrain.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher said the war on Iraq has put the Middle East in a very difficult situation that the ministers must deal with.
"The main item on the agenda will be the future of Iraq," Mr Maher said on his arrival in Riyadh.
He said the ministers would discuss "ways and means to help the Iraqi people decide their own fate and choose their own government without foreign intervention".
The meeting falls within the framework of a Saudi initiative to employ Arab efforts to ease the suffering of the Iraqi people and to set up a new government that will guarantee the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iraq.
Most Arab countries oppose the US plan to lead an interim administration of Iraq, with Iraqis initially in advisory roles.
They have instead called for a government chosen by Iraqis themselves under UN supervision, allowing the people of Iraq to run all the affairs of their country.
"This is Iraq, this is not the US. It is normal that the government in Iraq should be Iraqi," Mr Maher said.
AFP