CAIRO, Mar 29 (Aswat Masriya) - Arab world leaders agreed in principle to establish a unified military force on Sunday at the end of the Arab League summit hosted by Egypt. 

AL Secretary General Nabil al-Araby said the joint military force will serve to "defend our collective security", in an announcement today.     

Concluding the summit, Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said a high-level team of the chiefs of staff of the AL member states will study all aspects of the proposed Arab force. 

Egypt backs the joint force and has been steadfast on calls to establish it, especially since launching airstrikes on militant targets in Libya in February. 

In his opening speech on Saturday, Sisi said the challenges faced by the Arab world necessitate a joint Arab military force to overcome them.

The unified Arab force would not "compromise the sovereignty of any Arab country", Sisi said, adding that it would be a tool to face the challenges facing Arab national security.

During the closing session, Sisi said he received a letter from Russian President Vladimir Putin, which was read out by AL Deputy Secretary General Ahmed Ben Helli.  

The Russian president said he stands by the Arab people in their ambitions and that his country attaches a great level of importance to resolving crises in Iraq, Syria and Libya through comprehensive dialogue. 

The Russian word was criticised by Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal, who questioned Russia's role in the Syrian crisis. 

This summit, which started on Saturday, is the first one held in Egypt since the January 2011 uprising which toppled the regime of former President Hosni Mubarak.