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Lebanese and Syrian leaders meet Lebanese and Syrian leaders meet
(about 14 hours later)
Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri has met President Bashar Assad in Damascus, Syria, amid efforts to ease tensions between the two neighbours.Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri has met President Bashar Assad in Damascus, Syria, amid efforts to ease tensions between the two neighbours.
Mr Hariri said the talks were friendly, open and positive.
It was his first official visit there since his anti-Syrian coalition first came to power in 2005.It was his first official visit there since his anti-Syrian coalition first came to power in 2005.
An aide to Mr Assad said the talks had "succeeded in overcoming difficulties".
Mr Hariri's father, former Lebanese PM Rafik Hariri, was assassinated in 2005. The attack was widely blamed on Syria, but Damascus denied any involvement.Mr Hariri's father, former Lebanese PM Rafik Hariri, was assassinated in 2005. The attack was widely blamed on Syria, but Damascus denied any involvement.
Syria was forced later that year to withdraw its troops from Lebanon after 29 years.Syria was forced later that year to withdraw its troops from Lebanon after 29 years.
'Brotherly ties' Troubled past
Mr Hariri said the aim of his latest visit was to establish "real and strategic relations with Syria". At a press conference at the newly-opened Lebanese embassy in Damascus, Mr Hariri said the talks covered all areas of interest to the two countries.
Ties between the two leaders have improved in recent times Mr Hariri, who has previously blamed Syria for killing his father, Rafik Hariri, said both countries were learning from the past and trying to build for the future.
Last month, Mr Hariri said he was interested in forging relations with Syria based on "clarity and honesty". Asked about the international tribunal established to investigate the killing, Mr Hariri said both leaders agreed that the issue was now in the hands of the international community, and that all concerned wanted the truth.
"The government wants to raise brotherly ties between Lebanon and Syria to a level in line with the two countries' historical ties and mutual interest," he said before his government received a vote of confidence in parliament. He said Lebanon wanted relations with Syria built not on a personal basis, but on principles that would provide mutual benefits.
Mr Hariri's bloc won elections in June. His words were in line with a Syrian statement saying the talks had "succeeded in overcoming difficulties" and stressing the need for cooperation to face regional challenges such as the Arab world's relationship with Israel.
He now heads a national unity cabinet which includes two members of pro-Syrian Islamist group Hezbollah. After elections in June, Mr Hariri formed a national unity government in Lebanon in which allies of Syria are strongly represented.
The BBC's Lina Sinjab in Damascus says this visit has opened a new chapter in the relations between the two countries, but there are worries in Lebanon that it will renew Syria's influence in the country's politics.