Crown Prince Sultan briefs cabinet on official visit to Spain

Saudi-Spanish statement asserts bilateral strategic relations developed

GCC foreign ministers discuss in Jeddah Council's progress, regional, int'l developments

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud chaired the Cabinet's session held in the Saudi capital Riyadh.

At the outset of the session, the king briefed the Cabinet on the contacts, meetings and consultations made during the week on the bilateral relations, issues of the region and the world including his meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Pakistan's Premier Yousuf Raza Gilani

. In this context, the Cabinet stressed the kingdom's constant positions supporting the brothers in Palestine in their struggle for a Palestinian state that ensures for the Palestinian people their national unity, living needs, economy and independence. The Cabinet also emphasized the importance of the unity of the Palestinian decision and return to national unity principles agreed upon by the Palestinian leaders.

In a statement to Saudi Press Agency (SPA) following the session, Minister of Culture and Information Iyad bin Amin Madani said that on the directives of the king, the Cabinet listened to a briefing from Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General, on the results of the crown prince's official visit to the Kingdom of Spain and the resulting agreements that will boost cooperation between the two countries.

The Minister of Culture and Information said that on another subject, the Cabinet hailed the outcomes of the International Islamic Conference for Dialogue organized by the Muslim World League in Makkah in response to a call from the king for an Islamic dialogue as well as a dialogue among the followers of the divine religions and oriental philosophies and faiths stressing the concepts of coexistence, the common values and ethics and the importance of the family as a basic social system.

The Cabinet valued the great prospects and the noble goals of the king's initiatives to establish the values of dialogue as national, Islamic and international practices

. On economic affairs, the Cabinet stressed that the current increase in oil prices is unjustifiable in terms of oil data and market fundamentals.

The Kingdom, as a major producing country, realizes that the oil market has adequate supply and increasing trade stocks. The Kingdom works in coordination with OPEC countries and major oil producers to ensure the provision of oil supplies at the present and future, and works on the unjustified and exceptional increase in oil prices which may affect the world economy, especially the economies of developing countries.

The Kingdom has increased its production during this month. It also informed all oil companies with which it deals and oil-consuming countries of its readiness to provide any additional oil quantities they need.

The Cabinet directed the Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources to call for an upcoming meeting involving representatives from producing and consuming countries and companies active in the production, export and sales of petroleum to take into consideration the high prices, their causes, and how to objectively deal with them.

Then the Cabinet reviewed topics on its agenda and took the following decision:

Having examined Royal Decree No. (2072 / mb) dated on 10 / 3 / 1429 which calls for the formation of a ministerial committee to study the delay of some contractors in the implementation of projects and how to deal with this phenomenon, the Cabinet approved the rules and procedures that address delay in the implementation of governmental projects

. King Juan Carlos I of Spain visited in Madrid Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General at the residence of the Crown Prince.

The King of Spain and the Crown Prince held a meeting in which they exchanged cordial talks and reviewed issues of common interest between the two friendly countries.

The meeting was attended by Prince Saud bin Naif bin Abdulaziz, Saudi Ambassador to the Kingdom of Spain and Jose Manuel, Spanish Ambassador to Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

After that, the King of Spain accompanied the Crown Prince to the airport in an official procession.

At the Airport, the Crown Prince was seen off by King Juan Carlos I of Spain; Prince Saud bin Naif bin Abdulaziz, Saudi Ambassador to the Kingdom of Spain and Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naif bin Abdulaziz.

Then, the Crown Prince shook hands with a number of Arab diplomatic corps accredited to Spain; Saudi Military Attaché in Spain Colonel Abdullah Jazl Al-Shammari; staff members of the Saudi Embassy in Madrid and a number of Spanish civilian and military officials.

For his part, the King of Spain shook hands with the members of the official delegation accompanying the Crown Prince who left with the Crown Prince.

In an arrival statement at Madrid International Airport, Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation, and Inspector General, said:

"As I arrive in the Kingdom of Spain, I am glad to express my thanks to and appreciation of His Majesty King Juan Carlos for his kind invitation to me to visit this friendly country.

I would also like to express my great pleasure on this occasion which will allow us to meet with His Majesty the King and to convey the greetings of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz to his Majesty, and have a meeting with His Royal Highness Prince Asturias, Felipe de Borbon, the Prime Minister Mr. Jose Luis Zapatero and senior officials of the Spanish government, to continue discussing ways to support and develop areas of cooperation between our two friendly countries in various fields, in addition to discussing regional and international issues of common concern.

The firm friendly relations between our two countries have witnessed considerable enhancement since the visit of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques to Spain last year during which a number of agreements were signed to promote bilateral relations in various fields, as well as the recent visit of His Majesty King Juan Carlos to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia which has positively pushed such relations forward.

As we look forward to a continuing constructive role of Spain to push peace efforts in the region, we are confident that our discussions with His Majesty the King and His Royal Highness Prince Asturias and the Prime Minister will reflect the rapprochement of views between the two countries that aim to achieve comprehensive and just peace in the Middle East and to coordinate efforts on the international level for constructive cooperation for the good of all humanity.

Once again, let me say that I am pleased to be here in this friendly country and extend our thanks to and appreciation of His Majesty the King, His Royal Highness Prince Asturias, the Prime Minister and the friendly Spanish government for the warm reception and generous hospitality accorded to us upon our arrival, a reception that reflects the depth of the relationship between our two friendly countries".

A joint statement issued in Madrid between Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Kingdom of Spain at the end of the visit of Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation, and Inspector General to Kingdom of Spain.

The following is the text of statement:

In response to a kind invitation of King Juan Carlos I of Spain, Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation, and Inspector General of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia paid an official visit to Kingdom of Spain on June 5-8,2008.

Crown Prince Sultan held meetings with King Juan Carlos I of Spain, Prince of Asturias Felipe de Borbon, Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero in a cordial atmosphere during which bilateral relations were reviewed in addition to the international and regional issues of mutual concern.

In assertion of developing bilateral relations between the two countries and within the framework of the strategic relations between them, the two sides reviewed bilateral relations in all fields and expressed their satisfaction and pride of deep relations binding the two friendly countries. The two sides expressed their satisfaction over the big opportunities available and emerged as a result of the leading position occupied by economies of the two countries in their regions. They highlighted the strength and firmness of economies of the two countries and the distinguished growth recently achieved by them. Affirming the mutual trust between the two sides, they pledged to concentrate their efforts on the optimal utilization of their potentials in commercial, industrial, investment, financial and economic fields.

The two sides also agreed on the importance of further promotion of the economic relations between the Arab Gulf Cooperation Council countries and the European Union.

In this context, the two sides expressed their hope in reaching as soon as possible an agreement of free trade zone between them. The two sides expressed their satisfaction over signing the memorandum of understanding during this visit between Ministry of Defense and Aviation in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Ministry of Defense in Kingdom of Spain in the field of defense.

The two sides emphasized the importance of enhancing mutual Saudi-Spanish efforts to support the peace process and to achieve stability in the Middle East. They stressed the importance of foundations stated in Annapolis Conference in launching the comprehensive peace process in the Middle East. They look forward to achieving more positive steps for peace in the Middle East on clear and firm bases and commitment to dealing with the main issues of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict to reach the establishment of an independent Palestinian state in the framework of the comprehensive, lasting and just solution to the Middle East issue.

The negotiations between the two parties shall be based on the principles and resolutions of the international legitimacy, the Arab peace initiative and the Road Map plan.

They also affirmed the importance of mechanism of following up the negotiations to ensure fulfillment of the conflicting parties of the mutual commitments, calling on the international community to provide the means and facilities for the Palestinian national authority to assist the Palestinian people. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia expressed its deep appreciation of the efforts of Kingdom of Spain in this respect.

Regarding the Lebanese affairs, the two sides welcomed the agreement reached in Qatari capital of Doha between the Lebanese parties which led to electing General Michel Suleiman as President of Lebanon. They appealed for supporting the Lebanese government, unifying the national decision in Lebanon and keenness on the legitimacy of the state of Lebanon according to provisions of Al-Taif agreement and sessions of the national dialogue.

They also call for supporting the control of the state and its national institutions over all Lebanese territories, for cooperation to implement the international legitimacy resolutions including the resolution of the security council No. 1701 and for the necessity that all Lebanese work on unification of Lebanese ranks, enhancement of security and stability and dominance of wisdom, reason and language of dialogue.

The two countries stressed their commitment to help the Iraqi people and to exert efforts to achieve security and stability in Iraq. They agreed that the national reconciliation between all Iraqi strata, expansion of the political process to achieve participation of all classes of Iraqi people and disbanding various militias constitute important bases for Iraq's stability. The two sides asserted the importance of respecting Iraq's sovereignty, independence, identity, territorial integrity and non intervention in its internal affairs.

With regard to Iran's nuclear file, the two sides called on the international community to exert efforts to solve this file through diplomatic means. They demand that all Middle East countries join the Convention of non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and make the region free of mass destruction weapons according to the international resolutions in this regard.

The two sides reviewed the efforts exerted to combat terrorism and asserted their condemnation of all its forms that threaten security, peace and stability all over the world. They agreed on the importance of intensifying the international cooperation for fighting it. In this framework, Spain valued the proposal of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to establish an International Anti-Terrorism Center.

The two sides expressed their satisfaction over the current cooperation in the field of security in combating terrorism and the organized crime and agreed on expediting completion of procedures of signing a security agreement between the two countries.

The two sides expressed their rejection of the idea of clash of civilizations and appealed for supporting the initiatives calling for peaceful coexistence. They welcomed alliance of civilizations and the initiative of the United Nations, whose first forum was held at the beginning of this year 2008. The Spanish side highlighted the momentous importance of the initiative of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud concerning dialogue between religions.

They agreed to work together to disseminate culture of mutual respect, understanding and interaction between the Arab and Islamic world and the western world. The two sides welcomed the convention of the first forum of Alliance of Civilizations in the Spanish capital at the beginning of this year 2008.

Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation, and Inspector General has expressed his deep appreciation for the warm welcome, generous hospitality, sincere feelings accorded to him and the accompanying delegation by King Juan Carlos I of Spain; Prince of Asturias, Felipe de Borbon; Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero.

Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General has sent a cable of thanks to King Juan Carlos I of Spain.

In his cable the Crown Prince said,

"We are pleased to express our sincere thanks and gratitude to you when we leave your friendly country after meeting your Majesty and a number of officials of Kingdom of Spain for your kind invitation and for the warm welcome and generous hospitality accorded to us.

Also, we are pleased to express our pride in the close and historic relations between the two countries, looking forward to further cooperation in all fields for the interest of our two peoples. I wish you permanent good health and happiness and steady progress and prosperity for your friendly country and people".

Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General has sent a cable of thanks to Prince of Asturias, Felipe de Borbon. In his cable the Crown Prince said,

"We are pleased to express our sincere thanks and appreciation of you when we leave your friendly country for the warm welcome and generous hospitality accorded to us.

We are pleased over meeting you and we express our sincere thanks for your noble feelings towards the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. I wish you permanent good health and happiness and steady progress and prosperity for friendly Kingdom of Spain".

Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General has sent a cable of thanks to Prime Minister of Spain Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero.

In his cable the Crown Prince said,

"We are pleased to express our sincere thanks and appreciation of you when we leave your friendly country for the warm welcome and generous hospitality accorded to me and the accompanying delegation.

We are pleased over meeting you and over your keenness on strengthening aspects of cooperation between the two countries in all fields. We commend the discussions held with you and their outcomes in enhancing the cooperation and communication between the two friendly countries under the leadership of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and King Juan Carlos I.

We express our satisfaction over your positive opinions on issues concerning our two countries and the developments in the Middle East which have been identical with the visions of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.

I wish you permanent good health and happiness and steady progress and prosperity for the friendly people of Spain."

Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation, and Inspector General arrived in the Kingdom coming from abroad after a private vacation and an official visit to Kingdom of Spain, the Royal Court said in a statement issued.

Foreign Ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council tonight concluded their 107th Ministerial Meeting in this resort city of Jeddah.

Presided over by Ahmed bin Abdullah Al Mahmoud, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of Qatar, who is also President of the rotating presidency of the Ministerial Council, the meeting expressed deep feelings of grief and sorrow on the death of former Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Sabah, and Sheikh Nasser bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates.

The Ministerial Council praised the International Islamic Conference on Dialogue, organized by the Muslim World League upon initiative of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, which was held in Makkah last week aiming at laying the foundations for dialogue among followers of divine religions and man-inspired philosophies.

The Ministerial Council also expressed appreciation of the efforts made by Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar, who is also Chairman of the Supreme Council for GCC, and resulting in bringing together the Lebanese factions under "Doha agreement," culminating previous efforts undertaken by the Arab League and the Arab ministerial committee.

The Ministerial Council welcomed the election of Michel Suleiman, as Lebanon's new President, stressing the need to crown the Doha agreement with the formation of a government of national unity and to begin a national dialogue.

The Ministerial Council also congratulated Bahrain for winning the membership of the United Nations Human Rights Council.

Then the Ministerial Council reviewed reports on different activities of the GCC presented by the relevant committees in a number of areas, and new developments highlighted the political issues, regional, Arab and international levels.

The Ministerial Council was briefed on the latest developments on negotiations with other countries and international groups, welcoming the initialing of the Free Trade Agreement between the GCC States and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).

The Ministerial Council expressed hope that the two parties could finalize and sign the free trade agreement between the GCC and the European Union before the end of this year.

The ministers reviewed reports in the fields of human affairs and environment, uses of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, higher education, youth and sport, military cooperation, common defense, the development of the Arab Peninsula Shield Forces, security coordination and cooperation and security cooperation.

The Council welcomed the signing of an agreement between Saudi Arabia and Qatar, allowing citizens of the two countries to move by personal identity cards.

On the fight against terrorism, the Council stressed the positions of the GCC countries on this dangerous internationally-growing phenomenon, renewing its call for launching a regional and international effort to combat this phenomenon.

The Council expressed deep regret at the false information released by a report issued by the U.S. State Department recently accusing the GCC countries of human trading. The statement said the information aims at exerting pressure on the GCC states for political purposes, calling on the U.S. State Department to review its unfriendly policies towards the GCC state members.

The Council also condemned the terrorist bombing that took place in Algiers, killing a number of innocent people.

The Council reaffirmed its support for international efforts to combat terrorism in all its forms, whatever its source and justification.

On the political side, the Ministerial Council discussed the overall situation and the latest political developments at the regional, Arab and international levels.

As regards the continued occupation of the Islamic Republic of Iran of the three UAE-owned islands of Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb and Abu Musa, the Ministerial Council, reiterated its fixed and well known positions, namely:

-- Supports UAE's right of sovereignty over the three islands and the territorial waters, airspace, continental shelf and economic zone of the three islands as an integral part of the United Arab Emirates.

-- Regrets that contacts with Iran did not make any positive results

-- Calls for considering all peaceful means leading to the restoration of the right of the United Arab Emirates

-- Calling on Iran to help resolve the issue through either direct negotiations or international arbitration

On Iran's nuclear file, the Council renewed its call for resolving the dispute by peaceful means.

The Council renewed its demand to make the Middle East region free from all weapons of mass destruction, including the Gulf region, while recognizing the right of countries in the region to possess expertise in the field of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes

On Iraq, the Ministerial Council renewed its firm and well known positions, calling for the unity, sovereignty and independence of Iraq and non-interference in its internal affairs, and maintenance of the Arab and Islamic identity of Iraq.

The Council also stressed that achieving security and stability in Iraq requires a political and security address to the causes and roots of the crisis.

The Council reiterated its call for the United Nations and other relevant bodies to end the other still-remaining issues, including the return of Kuwait national archives, identifying the fate of remaining POWs and missing persons who belong to Kuwait and other countries.

On the Middle East peace process, the Council condemned and deplored the continuing attacks, and barbaric practices, perpetrated by Israeli occupation forces, on a daily basis, against the Palestinian people, calling on the international community to exert more effective efforts to mount pressure on Israel and warned of the danger of continuous ignoring of the Arab and international peace initiatives . The Council demanded that Israel stops the Judaization of Al-Quds, building and expanding of settlements, and lifts the unjust blockade on Gaza Strip and the closure of the crossings, and all actions that would aggravate the humanitarian suffering of the Palestinian people.

The Council stressed the need for the international community to assume political and moral responsibilities towards the Palestinian people. The Ministerial Council, reiterated the necessity and importance of Palestinian national unity, as the basis for protecting the supreme interests of the Palestinian people, calling on the Palestinian brothers to return to compliance with Makkah Agreement.

The council, once again, demanded that Israel withdraws completely from Israeli-occupied Arab territories including the Syrian Golan Heights to June 1967 parallel, and the remaining occupied southern Lebanon, in accordance with the relevant Security Council resolutions.

The Ministerial Council expressed concern over the European Union trend of upgrading their scientific, economic and political contacts with Israel, while Israel's continually violates human rights, and fails to meet its obligations, as well as what was agreed upon in Annapolis.

On Sudan affairs, Ministerial Council condemned the attack on the city of Omdurman, stressing its solidarity with the Government of Sudan, and calling for solving the crisis in Darfur through dialogue and national reconciliation.

On the Somali issue, the Council called on all Somali parties to renounce violence and halt operations targeting the obstruction of the march of national reconciliation, and work to achieve national reconciliation, and to support the reconciliation conference held in Djibouti, and dissemination of security and stability in all Somali territories.

The Council stressed the need to adhere to the commitments, agreements, which were signed in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on 16/9/2007 under the auspices of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.