Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said Thursday that a four-way summit here earlier achieved a consensus to support Lebanese President Michel Suleiman to launch a process of dialogue in his country.

"There is a unanimity on the support of the Lebanese President and launching a process of dialogue in Lebanon," Assad told a press conference following the summit.

The summit also gathers visiting French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Qatar's Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani.

For his part, Sarkozy told reporters that "what is done by President Bashar Assad in Lebanon has had a significant role in restoring stability in Lebanon."

Suleiman was elected as president after rival Lebanese parties reached an Qatari-brokered agreement in May, ending a long-lasting political crisis in Lebanon. Damascus was deemed to play a constructive role in achieving the pact.

(Xinhua News Agency September 5, 2008)