The leaders of Syria and Egypt are vowing to push for united Arab support for Saudi Arabia's Mideast peace proposal at next week's Arab summit in Beirut. 

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad say the land-for-peace initiative demonstrates Arab determination to realize a just and comprehensive peace. 

Mr. Mubarak and President Assad issued the statement following talks in Cairo Wednesday. They also warned against targeting Iraq as part of an expanded war on terrorism. President Bush has said Iraq, North Korea and Iran form "axis of evil" bent on developing weapons of mass destruction. 

The two-day Arab summit convenes in Beirut on March 27. Earlier this week, President Mubarak met with Saudi Arabia's foreign minister, Prince Saud al-Faisal, who said he has heard no Arab opposition to the Saudi peace plan. 

The Saudi foreign minister also met with Amr Moussa, the secretary-general of the 22-member Arab League. Mr. Moussa has told an Italy's Corriere della Sera newspaper that he thinks peace could be achieved in just six months if Israel accepts the plan. But Mr. Moussa predicts Israel will reject the Saudi proposal unless Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is pressured into endorsing it by the United States. 

The plan's broad outline has won support from the United States and the European Union. Proposed by Crown Prince Abdullah, the Saudi plan offers Israel completely normal relations with the Arab world in return for its pullout from land captured in the 1967 Mideast War. 

Some information for this report provided by AP and AFP.

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