January 14, 2005

A MESSAGE TO THE SAUDI CROWN PRINCE FROM KING ABDULLAH. SAUDI-JORDANIAN TALKS AROUND THE REGIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENTS. PRINCE SULTAN IBN ABDUL AZIZ PAYS THREE DAYS OFFICIAL VISIT TO THE EMIRATES. PRINCE SAUD AL FAISAL TALKS ABOUT THE OPTIMISTIC ATMOSPHERE REGARDING THE PALESTINIAN CAUSE THROUGHOUT THE CURRENT YEAR. TALKS BETWEEN SULTAN QABOOS AND THE EMIRATES' PRESIDENT COVER THE REGION'S AFFAIRS AND MUTUAL COOPERATION. THE SIGNING OF COMPREHENSIVE PEACE AGREEMENT IN SUDAN. Crown Prince Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Deputy Prime Minister and Commander of the National Guard, received a message from King Abdullah II of Jordan. The message was delivered to the Crown Prince by Jordan's Prime Minister Faisal Al-Fayez during a meeting at the Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh. Talks during the meeting covered latest developments in the region and means of coordination Arab efforts to encounter challenges facing the Arab nation. The meeting was also attended by Foreign Minister Hani Mulki and Jordanian Ambassador to the Kingdom Quftan Al Majali. Later, Crown Prince Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz, has received a telephone call from Jordanian King Abdullah II. During the call, they discussed relations between the two countries and regional developments. Meanwhile, Crown Prince Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz received at the Royal Court at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh the US Ambassador to the Kingdom James Oberwetter. During the audience, the Ambassador conveyed to the Crown Prince the greetings of the US President George W. Bush. On his part, Crown Prince Abdullah sent his greetings to the President. Crown Prince Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz also received at the Royal Court at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh the Kingdom's General Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz Ibn Abdullah Al Al-Sheikh, who is also Chairman of the Senior Ulema Commission, Religious Research Department and Ifta; Sheikh Salih Ibn Mohammed Al-Lihaidan, Chief of Supreme Judiciary Council; other Ulema and sheikhs who came to greet him. Later, the Crown Prince also received the brothers and sons of late Sheikh Mitrik Ibn Deeb Ibn Shafloot, leader of Obaidat Gahtaan tribe. Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Second Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence and Aviation and Inspector General, received at his palace in Riyadh visiting Lebanon's House of Representatives Speaker Nabih Berri, who is also Speaker of the Arab Parliaments Federation, and accompanying delegation. During the meeting, they exchanged cordial talks and reviewed bilateral relations binding the two countries. The audience was attended by Dr. Salih Ibn Abdullah Ibn Homaid, Chairman of the Shoura Council. Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz also received Russian Ambassador to the Kingdom Andrei Baklanova. During the meeting, they discussed issues of common interest to the two countries. Meanwhile, Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz received at his palace in Aziziya Engineer Abdullah Ibn Abdul Rahman Al Hussain, Minister of Water and Electericity, Dr Abdullah Al Faisal, President of King Saud University, Dr Abdul Malak Al Al-Sheikh, Secretary General of Prince Sultan International Award for Water, and Supervisor of Prince Sultan Centre for Environment, Water and Desert Researches at King Saud University and members of the Award's General Secretariat who came to congratulate Prince Sultan on the occasion of inaugurating the International Conference of Water Resources and Crude Environment 2004 organized by King Saud University represented by Prince Sultan Centre for Environment, Water and Desert Researches. Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Second Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence and Aviation and Inspector General, who is also Second Chairman of the Armed Service Council, chaired at his palace in Riyadh the second meeting of the ASC in the presence of princes, ministers and the Council's Secretary General. During the meeting, they reviewed the Secretary General's report covering the period between the first and this meeting as well as the recommendations presented by the preparatory committee on a number of issues regarding the proposed amendments to the armed forces officers and personnel systems, including the National Guard, the Ministry of Defence and Aviation, the General Intelligence and Ministry of Interior. Meanwhile, the Saudi royal Court announced in a statement that Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz will pay a three days official visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) last Wednesday. Prince Saud Al Faisal, the Foreign Minister, conferred in Riyadh with ambassadors of member states of the Jeddah-based Organization of Islamic Conference about the plan of the Kingdom to hold consultations with OIC member countries to mobilize emergency relief for the victims of the earthquake and Tsunami which devastated a number of south and Southeast Asian regions, inflicting the residents huge material losses and killing tens of thousands of them. The attendees also exchanged views on how to assist some 35,000 children left orphans by the disastrous quake. On their part, the envoys thanked the Kingdom for this initiative and its keenness to alleviate sufferings of the victims. The Arab-Japan 3rd Dialogue Forum organized by the Ministry of the Economy and Planning started with the participation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Japan. Prince Saud Al-Faisal, the Foreign Minister led the Saudi side to the two-day meetings. In his inaugural speech, Prince Saud said that they warmly welcomed the idea of the Forum in order to develop and enhance good relations between Arab countries and Japan. Prince Saud pointed out that the Forum has the capabilities to greatly contribute to the enhancement of peace and prosperity in the region, noting that challenges necessitate joint efforts with our friends and Japan which has a unique position to contribute to this mission. Addressing the Forum, Dr. Khalid Ibn Mohammed Al-Qusaibi, the Minister of Economy and Planning, stressed that the Forum has the capabilities to enhance multi-lateral relations between Japan and the Arab World. He expressed his pleasure over setting up a free trade zone between Japan and the Arab World. The Forum was also addressed by Japan's Former Prime Minister and Head of Delegation Ritaro Hashimoto who thanked the Kingdom for hosting this meeting, also praising good relations binding the Kingdom and Japan. He emphasized the necessity of the international cooperation to fight terrorist nets in the Middle East. In his speech, Ismael Sirajuddin, the Head of the Egyptian Delegation praised the great developments achieved by the Forum. Prince Saud Al-Faisal, the Foreign Minister co-chaired the new round of Japan-Arab Dialogue together with Ryutaro Hashimoto, former Prime Minister of Japan. The two-day trilateral dialogue in which senior Egyptian officials also participated, sough to strengthen the Arab-Japan joint partnership for development purposes and search the modalities of intensive cooperation amid drastic changes taking place in the Arab world. This was revealed by Japanese Ambassador Yasuo Saito. who was speaking at a farewell function organized in honour of a group of Saudi Ministry of Education officials who are scheduled to leave for Tokyo on Jan. 9 to attend a 40-day curricula development training program. Referring to the composite dialogue in which Saudi, Japanese and Egyptian officialsl participated, the Ambassador said: "This dialogue, which started 15 months ago in Tokyo, will cover the whole gamut of political, economic and social issues." From the Saudi side, the talks was attended by Khaled Ibn Mohammed Al-Gosaibi, Minister of Economy and Planning, and Dr. Hashim Yamani, Minister of Commerce and Industry. "The post-war Iraq with special reference to the role of international community and the Middle East peace process will top the agenda of the talks," Japanese officials said. The dialogue focused on the long-term political, economic and social stability in the Arab world where as many as 80 million jobs will have to be created in the next 15 years. Regarding the Gulf region, Sultan Qaboos Bin Saeed of Oman said the visit of United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Khalifa Ibn Zayed Al Nahyan to Oman would further boost the bilateral ties and cooperation and serve interests of the two brotherly people. During a meeting with the UAE President, the Omani leader said he was optimistic that bilateral relations would see more growth and opportunities for fruitful cooperation. It is a continuation of the policy of Sheikh Zayed Ibn Sultan Al Nahyan, whom, Sultan Qaboos said, had established the exemplary ties. "The visit will open up new avenues for cooperation for the two countries," he said. Sheikh Khalifa also reaffirmed the UAE's keenness to bolster bilateral ties in all fields. "The UAE and Oman will always remain an example to be followed in terms of relations among nations and a success story for bilateral cooperation," Sheikh Khalifa said. He said the prudent stewardship of Sultan Qaboos has been the driving force behind the staggering progress of Oman today. During talks, the two leaders stressed the importance of activating joint ministerial committees to make more gains for the two brotherly people. The leaders also reviewed ways of forging better ties with regards to the Gulf Co-operation Council. Later, the Oman leader hosted a luncheon in honour of Sheikh Khalifa and his delegation. A number of Omani ministers and top officials were also present. After the two-day trip, Sheikh Khalifa returned to the UAE, and was seen off by Sultan Qaboos and a delegation of top Omani officials. During the visit, Sheikh Khalifa was accompanied by a delegation comprising Sheikh Hazza ibn Zayed Al Nahyan, Lieutenant General Sheikh Saif Ibn Zayed Al Nahyan, Interior Minister; Sheikh Mansour Ibn Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Presidential Affairs, and other top officials. The UAE has offered a $100 million (Dh368 million) grant to Oman to finance the Salalah-Nizwa highway. The grant, ordered by President Sheikh Khalifa Ibn Zayed Al Nahyan, is meant to help Oman push ahead with its development programmes. Earlier Sheikh Khalifa held talks with Sultan Qaboos Ibn Saeed in Muscat before winding up his two-day official visit to the country. The UAE and Oman also signed a loan agreement for another road project. The Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) will grant the Omani government a loan of Dh191 million (about 20 million Omani riyals) to fund a vital road project linking the Sur and Qurayat districts of Oman. The UAE and Oman also signed a loan agreement according to which the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development will grant Oman a loan of Dh191 million for a key road project linking Sur and Qurayat districts of Oman. The agreement was signed under the directives of President Sheikh Khalifa Ibn Zayed Al Nahyan, as part of his commitment to boost bilateral economic ties. The agreement was signed by Saeed Khalfan Mattar Al Rumaithy, Director-General of the fund, and Mohammad Bin Naser Al Khasibi, Secretary-General of Oman's Ministry of National Economy. In Lebanon Hizbullah's well-planned and unprecedented bomb attack deep inside the Shebaa Farms could signal an end to the relative calm of the past year along Lebanon's tense southern frontier. The operation, in which an Israeli officer died and three soldiers were wounded, marked the first time Hizbullah fighters have infiltrated deep inside the Shebaa Farms to attack an Israeli target. Although the attack coincided with the Palestinian presidential election, the bold nature of the operation was a sign of Hizbullah's defiance against heightened international pressure over UN Resolution 1559. Three people, including a French UN peacekeeper, were killed in a sudden escalation of violence between Lebanon's Hizbullah militia and Israeli troops on the two countries' shared border. The violence began when Hizbullah detonated a roadside bomb that destroyed an Israeli military vehicle in Zebdin in the occupied Shebaa Farms near the border in South Lebanon, killing an Israeli officer and wounding three others. The UN peacekeeper was hit by shrapnel from Israeli fire in the same area in one of a series of retaliatory air raids launched by the Jewish state following the attack. Following Hizbullah's attack, Shimon Peres, due to become the Israeli government number two this week, issued a stark warning to Syria and Lebanon. He said: "Responsibility for this attack lies with Hizbullah, Lebanon and Syria." He added: "Hizbullah and its sponsors in Lebanon and Syria have to decide whether they want to be in a triangle of peace or in a triangle of provocations and terrorism. It is a very serious incident and a dangerous provocation and Israel is showing great restraint." Israel has staged air raids inside Syria in the past in retaliation for cross-border Hizbullah attacks. Sunday's violence comes just two days after Israeli troops opened fire on a Lebanese civilian van passing along the Lebanese side of the border. Milos Struger, spokesman for the U.N. peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon (UNIFIL), said the French officer was killed by "shelling from the Israeli side of the Blue Line,"- the border line drawn by UN troops following Israel's withdrawal from South Lebanon in 2000. The Lebanon-Israel border has been largely quiet since Israel withdrew its forces from southern Lebanon in May 2000 after an 18-year occupation. However, Hizbullah forces have occasionally attacked Israeli troops in the disputed Shebaa Farms area where the borders of Lebanon, Syria and Israel meet. Meanwhile, the Sudanese government and the southern rebels signed in Nairobi on Sunday a historical peace agreement that puts an end to the longest civil conflict in Africa that lasted for 50 years and resulted in killing 2 million persons. The signing ceremony was attended by heads of states or government of 12 African states, and the US Secretary of State Colin Powell who called both on the Khartoum and the rebels to work together to end the problems in Darfur. Both Arab and world reactions welcomed the signing of the agreement but also called for reaching a solution for the Darfur issue because of its significant importance in all parts of the country.