Ban praises U.N.-Arab League partnership

VIENNA, July 11 (UPI) -- The United Nations and Arab League need a strong relationship to address ongoing concerns in the Middle East and North Africa, the U.N. chief said.

Delegates from the United Nations and the Arab League met in Vienna for their first joint meeting since 2008. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, in a statement delivered to the representatives, said "dramatic changes" in the region proved collaboration by both sides was essential.

"The Arab Spring has provided new avenues for collaboration and a new sense of purpose," he said in his statement to the delegates.

Arab League authorities in 2011 endorsed a no-fly zone over Libya as the country descended into civil war. In 2012, former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan serves as a joint U.N.-Arab League envoy to the ongoing crisis in Syria.

Ban, in his statement, said unity among members of the international community was essential to efforts aimed at finding peaceful political solutions to crises in the Middle East.

"We are keen to do more with you to ensure food security, protect the environment and fight the illicit trafficking of drugs and arms," he said.