|
Riyadh: Iran's occupation of the three UAE islands and its nuclear row will top the agenda of the GCC foreign ministers' meeting scheduled to begin here tomorrow. The 99th session of GCC foreign ministers will be chaired by UAE's Foreign Minister Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who is the current chairman of the GCC foreign ministerial council. The meeting, which follows the GCC consultative summit held in Riyadh last month, and the 25th anniversary of its foundation, will discuss among other things the latest regional developments. Abdul Rahman Al Attiyah, Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council, said in a press statement here yesterday that the islands issue will be a major topic of discussion at the meeting.
The ministers will reaffirm their full backing to the UAE in its legitimate right to restore the three islands Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu Mousa occupied by Iran. "Relations with Iran, its controversial nuclear programme, situation in Iraq and Palestine, Mideast peace process and the progress being made in combating terror will be other major topics on the agenda of the meeting," he said. According to Al Attiyah, the foreign ministers will also review the steps being taken with regard to achieving economic integration, besides the negotiations with other major economic blocs like the European Union. Meanwhile, the second meeting of the GCC Consultative Commission, scheduled to be held in Muscat next Sunday, will discuss two important reports, one of which focuses on the significance of economic partnership in promoting relations between GCC States and their neighbouring countries. "The second report deals with the idea of 'economic citizenship' and its role in strengthening GCC citizenship," said Dr Hadif Al Dahiri, president of the commission. The 26th GCC summit, held in Abu Dhabi in December, 2005, had assigned the Consultative Commission to carry out studies on these topics. Dr Al Dahiri said the commission had constituted two expert committees to study the topics, and the committees have completed their studies after holding elaborate meetings, discussions and consultations with the concerned officials and agencies.
|
