Latin American and Arab leaders agreed to form a joint investment bank during a summit in Peru at which they also discussed the increasingly bloody civil war in Syria. At the end of the two-day meeting on Tuesday, the heads of state announced the investment bank would integrate national banks and could finance common projects between the Union of South American Nations and the Arab League.
The third summit of South American and Arab countries (ASPA) - representing some 32 countries - was intended to focus on economic and political co-operation. But the bloodshed in Syria dominated much of the discussion, and Arab League Secretary General Nabil al-Arabi urged the two blocs to work together to resolve the crisis. "Syria is going through an asphyxiating crisis, and regrettably no initiative to find a solution has been successful so far," he said. Syria's 18-month conflict that has claimed some 30,000 lives. "We have to reach a resolution as quickly as possible," Arabi added.