CAIRO, Jan. 11 (Xinhuanet) -- Egypt on Tuesday hosted the first consultative meeting of the follow-up mechanism decided by an international conference held in Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh last November, the official MENA news agency reported.

    The meeting stressed the necessity of implementing the conference's final communique to facilitate the political process in Iraq, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

    Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiar Zebari briefed the delegates on the latest developments in Iraq and the steps taken by the Iraqi interim government to enhance the political process, especially on the Iraqi elections scheduled for Jan. 30.

    The delegates believed that consultations on the future of Iraq should be maintained in order to support efforts aimed at maintaining stability in Iraq.

    The meeting brought together high-level officials representing the countries and international organizations which participated in Sharm El-Sheikh conference last year, namely Iraq's neighbors, the group of eight major industrialized countries, China, the United Nations, the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Conference. Enditem