During the meeting held on the sidelines of the International Donors and Investors Conference for East Sudan in Kuwait on Wednesday, the two officials also voiced opposition to efforts to separate the Northeastern African country into two states.

Mottaki and al-Miqdad highlighted the significance of strengthening unity in Sudan as an "important and influential" country in the Organization of the Islamic Conference, the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), the Arab League and the African Union.

Representatives from 39 countries, 28 institutions, as well as 73 non-governmental organizations are taking part in the two-day conference to back the development of east Sudan.

Media reports suggest that the United States, Britain and Israel are pressuring Sudan to hand over the city of El Obeid to the North in exchange for the lifting of sanctions and financial aid.

Washington has already called for a referendum to be held in the city before it is held elsewhere.

From sudaneseonline.com Latest News Iranian, Syrian Officials Reiterate Support for Integrity in Sudan By [unknown placeholder $article.art_field1$] Dec 2, 2010 - 7:23:14 AM Iranian, Syrian Officials Reiterate Support for Integrity in Sudan TEHRAN (FNA)- Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki and Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal al-Miqdad underlined the two countries' strong support for territorial integrity of Sudan.