Luanda - Angolan head of State José Eduardo dos Santos received Monday in Luanda a message from his Gabonese colleague Ali Bongo, on the strengthening of bilateral cooperation, a week before the holding of Summit of the African Union (AU) to be held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Bearing the letter is the minister of Foreign Affairs of Gabon, Emmanuel Issoze-Ngondet, who told Angop that his mission also include issues linked to the 15-16 July summit.

"I am carrying a message from President Ali Bongo to his counterpart President Dos Santos, which addresses matters related to the cooperation between the two countries, in addition to discussing the African Union Summit," he said.

Asked if the new-candidacy of Jean Ping to his own succession was part of the agenda, the minister said that the issue could also be addressed during his the 24-hour visit to Angola.

"The African Union dossier includes several issues that deserve our attention, ranging from the matters related to peace and security in the continent to those linked to the cooperation among the EU countries.

The official also spoke of the possibility of approaching the question of the candidacy of Jean Ping.

The visit comes at a time when the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) is holding official contacts in order to win support for the candidate of the regional organisation to the post of the African Union Commission, the South African Nkosazana Dlamini - Zuma.

In his turn, the Gabonese Jean Ping is running for the second four-year term, with the support of majority from Western Africa countries.

The Gabon's top diplomat was received at "4 de Fevereiro", International Airport in Luanda by the Foreign Affairs minister, Georges Chikoty, the ambassador of Gabon to Angola, and senior officials of both institutions.