Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, Egypt's President Mubarak discuss in Jeddah bilateral relations, regional and int'l developments

Second Deputy Premier Prince Naif says kingdom enjoys security and stability

Minister Bahia al-Hariri praises Saudi Arabia's backing of study in Lebanon

Saudi Arabia call in the Hague for establishing a nuclear weapons-free area in the Middle East

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz and Egyptian President Mohammad Hosni Mubarak held a meeting in which they discussed the overall developments at the Arab, Islamic and international arenas topped by the developments of the Palestinian cause.

The talks also dealt with Saudi-Egyptian cooperation.

The talks were attended on the Saudi side by Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz, Second Deputy Premier and Interior Minister, Prince Khalid Alfaisal bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Makkah Region, and Dr. Abdulaziz Alkhwaitir, the Minister of State. On the Egyptian side, the talks were attended by a number of ministers and senior officials.

Commenting on the Saudi-Egyptian summit, the Abha-based Al-Watan said the summit focused on discussing ideas and efforts as well as the recent regional developments notably the latest events pertaining to the Palestinian and Iranian issues.

The paper noted that the current efforts are now concentrating on the Palestinian issue in the light of the speech delivered by US President Barack Obama in Cairo earlier this month in addition to the speech delivered by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu in which he spelled out his ideas which differ from the firm and just stance of Washington about the peace process in the region.

The paper believes that the Arab countries should voice support to Obama's Middle East policy, and said the efforts of Cairo to boost the Palestinian dialogue constitute an important development.

"Such a strategy will project Israel as the sole country in the region which is unwilling in bringing about peace to the region," said the paper, adding that this will provide a historical opportunity to the Arabs to penetrate the American middle east policy.

The daily said the policy of appeasement being adopted by Syria in addition to the preoccupation of Iran with its internal situation, should prompt the concerned authorities to work for unifying the ranks as King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz and President Hosni Mubarak have been doing.

The daily underscored the importance of establishing good relations with Iran, hoping that Tehran will learn lesson and revise its policy.

"The Saudi-Egyptian coordination is a strong message to the region that regional cooperation based on reason and service of historical mutual interests is capable of confronting the challenges," it concluded.

The Makkah-based Al-Nadwa said the summit talks to be co-chaired by King Abdullah and President Mubarak comes within the framework of the existing consultation and coordination between the Saudi and Egyptian Leaderships.

"This summit will positively contribute to further enhancing bilateral relations and tackling the political developments in the region," the paper said.

The Kingdom and Egypt, due to their regional political weight, are capable of playing a significant role as regards restoration of the Arab rights, said the daily.

"In view of the disappointing speech earlier delivered by Israeli premier Netanyahu, there is a need for a firm Arab stand for confronting the Israeli rhetoric in addition to opting for flexibility so as to benefit from the new American stand," the paper said.

The daily believes that the US administration still supports the idea of establishing a Palestinian state and stopping Jewish settlements in the occupied territories.

It is hoped that the summit will accelerate the march towards peace in a manner that guarantees the restoration of the Arab rights as well as bringing about a fair and comprehensive peace in the region, it added.

Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz, the Second Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior stressed that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been one of the best countries in the world in spheres of security, stability and economy.

Prince Naif cited the visits of several Heads of State to the Kingdom over years, which he said reflected the Kingdom's key position at the international arena.

Delivering a speech at a dinner party hosted in his honor by Prince Khalid Al-Faisal bin Abdulaziz, the Governor of Makkah Region, Prince Naif expressed his pride for the Kingdom's right approach and adherence to the Holy Quran and Prophet's Sunnah (Tradition) in all areas of life.

He said that every region of the Kingdom is a home to all citizens and there is no difference between one region and another, praying to Allah Almighty to bless the soul of the Unifier - the late King Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman who united this nation under the banner "There is no God but Allah and Mohammed is Allah's Messenger" and that he made its constitution the Holy Quran and Prophet's Sunnah.

Prince Naif praised Allah Almighty for the great blessings for bestowing upon this country the existence of the Grand Mosque, the Prophet's Mosque and for serving of pilgrims, Umrah (minor pilgrimage) performers and visitors of the Prophet's Mosque.

Prince Naif stressed that the Kingdom now lives in security and safety - thanks to Allah Almighty and the determination of men, saying, "This country has been targeted for its religion, security, economy and stability. But trust in and reliance upon Allah Almighty, as well as the determination of men have enabled this homeland to stand against and defeat everyone who wishes evil for it. We live now in security and safety - thanks to Allah Almighty first, and then to the wise political leadership of this country and the unity of the people around their leadership. "

He expressed regrets over the participation and contribution of those misguided persons from the sons of this homeland in terrorist operations against their religion and homeland, affirming that the leadership of this country is capable of bringing them back to the right track.

Prince Naif commended the efforts of security men who have sacrificed their blood for preserving the security of this homeland.

He also emphasized the Kingdom's firm approach under the leadership of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and the Crown Prince, as well as its wise dealing with other countries according to the common interests, preservation of the position of this homeland and its sovereignty and the approach based on mutual respect in relations with others.

Prince Naif noted that the ambition of a person has no specified limit in the domain of progress, especially in the fields of science, technology and overall development which are called for by our Islamic religion, adding "As for thought and culture, everyone has his own affair, culture, heritage and customs."

The Second Deputy Premier and Interior Minister affirmed that the Kingdom has achieved great strides in the areas of science, medicine and technology, citing in this regard, the existence of many universities as well as sending a number of the sons and daughters of this country on scholarships abroad to gain additional and advanced knowledge about various sciences.

On his part, Member of Shoura (Consultative) Council Dr. Abdullah Al-Ma'tani delivered a speech on behalf of citizens in which he said that Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz enjoys statesmanship, wisdom and strong insight and that he has spent a long time in achieving security and stability in the Kingdom.

He added that Prince Naif is the creator of Intellectual Security Approach which is considered as one of the strongest weapons against terrorism, which has astonished the world seeking for its adoption after it has proved its success at the Prince's hands.

Meanwhile, King Abdullah has sent a reply cable of thanks to the President of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), Dr. Ahmad Mohammed Ali and IDB Member States, wishing them all success in supporting and enhancing the bonds of joint Islamic action.

Earlier, the IDB President sent a cable of thanks to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, on behalf of IDB Member States, on the occasion of increasing the Kingdom's contribution to IDB capital by 23,649 shares.

The percentage of the Kingdom's contribution to IDB capital has become 26.5% of the new IDB capital amounting 30 billion Islamic dinars.

On the other hand, Minister of Commerce and Industry Abdullah bin Ahmad Zainal Ali Rida and Yemeni industry and trade in Yemen Dr. Yahya al-Mutawakkil opened in Riyadh the joint meeting for the governmental and private sectors and the second meeting for the Saudi-Yemeni Business Council.

They reviewed trade and industrial relations between the two countries.

In 2007, the volume of trade exchange between the two countries amounted to SR 3, 251 million (SR 2,738 million Saudi exports to Yemen and SR 513 million imports to the Kingdom from Yemen).

The number of the joint projects now totals 341, including 196 industrial projects.

Almotawakil said the meeting of the Saudi-Yemeni joint business council aims at boosting integration of the Yemeni economy with economies of the GCC countries.

The ministers' remarks came after the end of the meeting.

In a similar statement, the head of the Saudi side of the council Dr. Abdullah bin Mahfoodh said that during the meeting, discussions focused on boosting trade between the two sides.

In the Hague, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia reiterated calls to render the Middle East a region free from nuclear weapons, stressing that stability and security are not achieved through the possession of weapons of mass destruction but rather through cooperation and consultations among nations and the endeavors to bring about development and progress.

This came in a speech delivered by Naif bin Bandar al-Sederi, a counselor at the embassy of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques in the Dutch city of the Hague.

The kingdom deemed Israel's possession of nuclear weapons a "main obstacle" on the road to achieve security and stability in the region.