GCC leaders pick Riyadh to host regional bank

Gulf leaders congratulate Crown Prince Sultan over recovery, successful surgery

Summit reiterates calls to denuclearize region, tackle Iran's nukes through peaceful means

Arab health ministers agree on recommendations to face swine flu pandemic

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz received GCC Leaders and Heads of the delegations to the 11th GCC consultative meeting, namely Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, the Vice-president of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa, the Bahraini Crown Prince, Fahd bin Mahmoud al-Saeed, the Omani Deputy Premier, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, the Qatari Emir, and Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, the Kuwaiti Emir.

King Abdullah as well as GCC Leaders and Heads of Delegation concluded at Dir'iya Palace their 11th Consultative Meeting.

Following that, the GCC Leaders and Heads of delegations had lunch with the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.

Then, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques bade farewell to GCC Leaders and Heads of Delegations who were Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President of UAE, Prime Minister, Ruler of Dubai; Sheikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Bahraini Crown Prince, Commander-in-Chief of Defense Force; Fahd bin Mahmoud Al Saeed, Omani Deputy Prime Minister for Cabinet Affairs; Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Qatari Emir; Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Kuwaiti Emir.

King Abdullah and the GCC leaders agreed that Riyadh be the headquarters of the GCC Monetary Council.

This was announced by Attiyah in a press conference held after the meeting.

The GCC Secretary General said that the details of monetary council will be announced later.

He added that the GCC leaders began their meeting by congratulating Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General, on recovery after the surgery he had wishing him constant health and safe return home.

The GCC Secretary General said that during their meeting, the leaders reviewed political, security and economic issues including the situation in Palestine, Iraq, the issue of the three UAE islands, the GCC relations with Iran and Arab reconciliation efforts.

They welcomed the signing of the Sudan-Chad reconciliation agreement.

The GCC Secretary General said the leaders discussed other issues including the railways and electric networks linking the GCC countries.

The Secretary General of the GCC cast light on the strategic railway project linking the GCC countries on which the leaders were briefed.

He revealed that, upon a proposal submitted by the Sultanate of Oman, the current president of the GCC, the leaders decided to invite the private sector in the GCC member states to take part in economic decision-making.

In support of a proposal submitted by the State of Qatar to activate the role of the GCC member countries in the political, military, security and economic aspects, the leaders have instructed the authorities concerned that a ministerial committee and other specialized committees to be formed to follow-up and support this proposal according to a specific timetable and present their findings to the forthcoming Kuwait GCC summit.

He confirmed that negotiations between the GCC and European Union have been suspended until the EU responds to the GCC proposals, particularly as regards exports fees.

On the impact of the international financial crisis on the economies of the GCC countries, Attiyah said "the economies of our countries are immune as certain measures have been taken by the GCC states, contributing to alleviating the repercussions of this crisis".

On the political affairs, the GCC Secretary General reiterated the welcome of the GCC of any dialogue among the world countries, particularly between the United States and Iran, provided that it would not be at the expense of the Arab countries in general and the GCC countries in particular.

We do reject any nuclear program challenging the international standards and nuclear non-proliferation treaties. However, we support Iran's right to possess peaceful nuclear energy, he stated.

Attiyah confirmed that the GCC member states reject that the region be converted to a field for disputes and race to posses nuclear weapons and blackmail of other countries.

Meanwhile, Health ministers of the GCC states and Yemen have decided to chalk out a joint strategic plan to prevent the spread of swine flu in the region, in case of an outbreak.

Following an emergency meeting to discuss the issue, the ministers urged people in the region to postpone non-essential travel to the countries that have reported confirmed cases of swine flu. The ministers, however, fell short of issuing a call for imposing a ban on travel to the affected countries.

The Yemeni Minister of Public Health and Population, Abdul Kareem Yahya Rasa, who chaired the meeting, had proposed a travel ban, but it was not accepted since the guidelines of the World Health Organization on swine flu do not call for it.

The ministers urged the people in the region to take extra precautions while visiting the countries that have reported swine flu cases, and advised them to avoid the visit if it was not urgent or necessary.

They decided to set up a permanent committee with a liaison officer from each member country to work out an action plan to address the situation.

Each country has to immediately report any suspected case of swine flu through the liaison officer or the GCC health ministers’ office.

The ministers called on the GCC countries to activate and update their preparations for swine flu and exchange expertise and information.

They decided to create a strategic reserve of the medicine to treat swine flu that should be sufficient for at least 10 percent the population of each country.

They urged pharmaceutical companies in the region to produce this medicine in compliance with international standards and after completing the legal formalities. They also urged such companies to equip themselves to produce a vaccine against swine flu as and when this vaccine is developed.

At the meeting, three laboratories in Saudi Arabia were accredited as competent to test for swine flu, along with a WHO-accredited laboratory in Egypt.

The ministers decided to prepare awareness programs about the disease as well as preventive measures. A scientific conference on swine flu will be held in Saudi Arabia on May 7, with participation by delegates from all the GCC countries.

GCC Secretary-General H E Abdulrahman Al Attiyah was also present at the meeting. Addressing the press after the meeting, Al Attiyah said there was no need for panic about swine flu in the region since the GCC states were capable of managing the situation.

“We have proved our capability and preparedness to meet any pandemic situation during the bird flu outbreak, in coordination with international organizations,” said Al Attiyah.

He welcomed the agreement signed in the Qatari capital of Doha last night between Sudan and Chad under the joint sponsorship of Qatar and Libya, a step he described as important in the way to overcome all difficulties marring relations between the two African neighboring countries.

Lauding the role played by the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani to bring about peace and stability to the Sudanese Chadian border area, Attiyah expressed hope that the agreement will constitute a milestone in the solution of the problem of Darfur.

On the other hand, the Extraordinary Meeting for the Executive Bureau of the Council of Arab Health Ministers was concluded in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Tuesday.

In a press conference following the meeting, Minister of Health Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, who is also the Head of the Executive Bureau of the Council of Arab Health Ministers, said that the Executive Bureau issued "Riyadh Declaration" in which it stressed the importance of coordinating and integrating efforts among Arab countries to confront swine influenza A(H1N1), praising the initiative of the Saudi Government under the leadership of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz to convene this extraordinary meeting.

Executive Bureau approved the formation of a committee of experts to review the proposed Saudi advisory plan and all Arab plans in order to take advantage of different experiences to formulate a unified plan.

Riyadh Declaration issued several decisions, including the activation of exchanging information, consultation and coordination with relevant international organizations and bodies such as the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as well as the provision of an appropriate strategic stock of anti-retroviral drugs in every country.

The Executive Bureau encouraged Arab countries to locally manufacture such drugs and ensure the compliance with international standards.