Amr Moussa, the secretary-general of the Arab League, has said there is a chance to break Lebanon's political deadlock which has left the country without a president for more than five months.
Moussa made the comments after meeting feuding Lebanese factions on Thursday in his latest attempt to break the impasse.
"Time is passing but I think there is a chance which we can exploit to make serious progress," he told reporters after a two-hour meeting in Beirut, the capital, with Nabih Berri, the parliamentary speaker, who is aligned with the Syrian-backed opposition.
Moussa's visit came two weeks after a similar trip by David Welch, the US assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern Affairs.
Moussa described his talks with Berri as extremely important.
He said: "We have begun work which I think can serve as a basis for progress."
But Moussa's several visits to Lebanon in the past have yielded little results.
Stalemate
Lebanon has been without a president since Emile Lahoud, the pro-Syrian president's term ended on November 23 and parliament failed to elect a successor.
The divided parliament had agreed on Michel Suleiman, the country's army commander, as a consensus president but failed to elect him because the US-backed parliamentary majority and the Syrian-backed opposition led by Hezbollah cannot agree over power-sharing arrangements and the shape of the future cabinet.
The majority had rejected the opposition's demand for veto power over future government decisions.
A 19th attempt to elect a president has been scheduled for May 13. A previous session on April 22 was postponed amid continued disagreement.