UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said on Monday that progress was being made towards the withdrawal of all Syrian troops from Lebanon.

Annan made the remarks at a news conference after making a introduction of report "In Larger Freedom" to the UN General Assemble.

"They have committed to full withdrawal, and we will be workingwith them to ensure that it is done," he said, noting that he would be meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad at an Arab League summit in Algiers on Tuesday .

"We need to make sure that the withdrawal is managed and organized in such a way that the Lebanese security forces move in and fill the vacuum, to make sure that no vacuum is created. And so we are making progress, but we need to handle it very carefully," he declared.

Annan has said he expects full withdrawal to take place before the Lebanese parliamentary elections scheduled for between mid-April and mid-May.

UN Security Council resolution 1559 calls for withdrawing all foreign forces from Lebanon, disbanding all militias and extending Government control over the whole country.