Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi said Saturday that the relations between Iraq and Syria, which broke off in 1980, would be resumed, and Iraq's friendship with Syria has entered a new stage.

"We are opening a new page with Syria," Allawi told reporters after meeting with Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, adding, "It is clear that our visit here is the beginning of a bright chapter in relations between our two brotherly peoples."

Allawi called on Syria to participate in the rebuilding of Iraq,invited Syrian state-owned and private companies to enter into thefields of Iraqi telecommunications, transportation and oil.

Syria, which was strongly against the US-led war on Iraq, greeted Allawi's government with suspicion, questioning whether itwas a US puppet regime.

But now Syria would do its best to help the Iraqis preserve their territorial integrity and sovereignty and realize security and prosperity, Assad was quoted by the Syria official SANA news agency as saying.

Both Iraq and Syria expressed the hope to resume as soon as possible diplomatic relations, which broke off in 1980 because of Syria's support to Tehran during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war.

The diplomatic relations with Syria "will be reestablished, andthey will be solid," Allawi told reporters.

On the border security issue, Allawi said the two sides agree to set up a joint committee to improve security along the 600-km-long desert border.

"We have formed a joint committee to look at these issues in detail in the future, in the weeks ahead," said the Iraqi leader.

Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Naji Otri also said after Allawi's meeting with Assad that Syria was opposed to any infiltration across the border, whether toward Iraq or toward Syria.

The United States always accuses Syria of not doing enough to stop anti-US militants from entering Iraq and this has strained relations between Syria and the United States.

But Syria denied the accusations, saying it cannot ensure border security without help from the Iraqi side.

According to the SANA news agency, during their talks on Friday,Otri and Allawi agreed on the importance to develop bilateral relations, particularly cooperation in the fields of economy and trade, energy and transportation.

Otri underlined Syria's deep-rooted relations with Iraq, and was quoted as saying that "Syria will surely feel happy to see that a strong and healthy Iraq has restored sovereignty and its role and position in the Arab world, and in the regional and international arenas."

Syria would provide political and economic assistance to Iraq in this regard, he said.

An economic rapprochement between the two countries began in 1997, and in March 2000, Iraq opened an interest section in Damascus, followed by a Syrian representation in Baghdad in May 2001.

During the meeting, Allawi expressed appreciation and gratitudefor Syria's support to the Iraqi people in various stages and its continued effort to preserve the unity of the Iraqi people, territory and sovereignty.

He proposed to set up a special mechanism to solve the impediments and difficulties arising in the two countries' cooperation, including Iraqi assets frozen in Syrian banks since the coalition toppled Saddam Hussein's regime.

Syria is the third leg of Allawi's maiden Middle East tour after he took the rein of the renascent government of Iraq two weeks ago. He has visited Jordan and Egypt, and will proceed to Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.

Observers believe Allawi's visit serves as an opportunity to reassure some neighbors, especially Syria, that Iraq would not be a base for launching offensive operations.

Allawi's visit also aims to enhance economic relations with Arab governments and engage them in the reconstruction of Iraq.