CAIRO: The 22-member Arab League on Friday hailed the decision by Syria and Lebanon to establish diplomatic relations as an important historical step.

"This agreement, which puts Syrian-Lebanese relations back on track...is an important historical step," league chief Amr Moussa said in a statement.

Demarcating their common frontier and examining the fate of hundreds of people missing since the 1975-1990 Lebanese civil war "are positive steps aimed at strengthening relations in the interests of both countries," he said.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Thursday also hailed the decision. In a statement released by his press office, the secretary general hailed the outcome of the recent Damascus summit between Lebanese President Michel Sleiman and Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad.

He noted "positively the decisions to begin the process to establish diplomatic relations through an exchange of ambassadors, and to take steps towards the delineation and control of the borders between the two countries."

On Wednesday, during a visit to Syria by Sleiman, Beirut and Damascus said they would establish diplomatic relations and exchange ambassadors for the first time.

Thursday, Syria and Lebanon also announced they have agreed to resume work of a committee to demarcate their common border.

The borders between the two countries are poorly demarcated in certain areas, particularly the Shebaa Farms, a mountainous sliver of land rich in water resources located at the junction of southeast Lebanon, southwest Syria and northern Israel.

The 25-square-kilometer (10 square mile) tract of farmland was seized by Israel from Syria in the 1967 Middle East war and is now claimed by Beirut, with the backing of Damascus.

Israel says they are part of Syria.

Sleiman's landmark two-day visit for talks with his counterpart Bashar Al-Assad was the first by a Lebanese president since Syria ended almost 30 years of military domination over Lebanon in April 2005.

The two states have not had diplomatic ties since independence from colonial power France — Lebanon in 1943 and Syria in 1946. –AFP