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December 29, 2006 |
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JOINT PRESS CONFERENCE EXPRESSES WORRIES OF THE TWO COUNTRIES AROUND LEBANON, THE PALESTINIAN SITUATION AS WELL AS IRAQ. BOTH COUNTRIES CALL FOR A PEACEFUL SOLUTION TO THE IRANIAN SITUATION. CUSTODIAN OF THE TWO HOLY MOSQUES DEPUTIZES CROWN PRINCE SULTAN BIN ABDULAZIZ TO MANAGE THE AFFAIRS OF THE COUNTRY BEFORE TRAVELING. PRINCE SAUD ALFAISAL EXPRESSES HOPE IN FINDING A MUTUALLY AGREEABLE SOLUTION TO THE PROPOSED ARAB GULF UNIFIED CURRENCY. Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz arrived back from Oman after a three day visit. At the airport, the King was seen off by Sultan Qaboos, ministers and other senior officials. As he arrived in Jeddah, The King was received by Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General, Prince Naif Bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Interior, other princes and officials. The King was accompanied by Prince Saud al-Faisal, the Foreign Minister, Prince Miqren Bin Abdulaziz, the Chief of General Intelligence, other princes and a number of ministers and officials. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz and Oman's Sultan Qaboos Bin Saeed chaired a session of official talks. During the session, they discussed overall situations and latest developments at the gulf, Arab, Islamic and international arenas; the stands of the two countries towards them; aspects of cooperation and brotherly relations existing between the two countries; and ways of their enhancement in all the fields to serve the interests of the two brotherly countries and their peoples. On the Saudi side, the session was attended by Prince Saud al-Faisal, the Foreign Minister; Prince Miqren Bin Abdulaziz, the Chief of General Intelligence; Prince Abdulaziz Bin Fahd Bin Abdulaziz, Minister of State, Cabinet Member and Chief of the Court of Cabinet's Presidency; Dr. Ghazi Bin Abdulrahman Al-Gosaibi, the Minister of Labor; Dr. Ibrahim Bin Abdulaziz Al-Assaf, the Minister of Finance; Iyad Bin Amin Madani, the Minister of Culture and Information; and Abdullah Bin Abdulrahman A'lim, Saudi Ambassador to Oman. On the Omani side, it was attended by Haitham Bin Tariq al Saeed, the Minister of Heritage and Culture and a number of ministers and senior officials. Before departing from Muscat, The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz also received members of the staff of the Saudi embassy in Oman. The audience was attended by a number of officials. Secretary General of Gulf Cooperation Council Abdulrahman Ala'ateyah described the visit by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz to Oman as historic. In a statement, he hailed the results of the Saudi Omani talks as positive saying the visit is part of the constant bilateral contacts among GCC countries. Prince Saud Alfaisal, Saudi Foreign Minister, and his Omani counterpart Youssef Bin Alawe Bin Abdullah held a joint press conference in Muscat to cast light on the state visit of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz to Oman. Commencing the meeting with reporters, the Omani Foreign Minister said the visit has reflected the strong ties linking the Sultanate of Oman and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He pointed out that the meeting of King Abdullah and Sultan Qaboos which was held in Muscat confirmed the firm positions and strong ties binding the two countries in all fields and at the bilateral, Arab, Islamic and international levels. He said the meeting of the two leaders and their official delegations focused on bilateral relations and joint march towards the exchange of experience and expertise in the service of the two countries, particularly in the social and economic fields. He said the viewpoints of King Abdullah and Sultan Qaboos towards international issues were identical, noting that the two countries work for bringing about stability and security in the Arab gulf and Arab regions. On his part, Prince Saud Alfaisal said the visit comes as a sincere expression of the extent of the deep-rooted cordiality binding the Sultan and the King and as a continuation of their close follow-up of the march of the GCC member countries and keenness on its promotion and development. He said the talks which took place between the two leaderships dealt with the most important issues and developments of events at the GCC and Arab arenas , particularly the dangerous situation in Iraq, the political turmoil in Lebanon in addition to the concerning situations at the Palestinian arena which auger ill for the presence and future of the arab nation's key issue. Prince Saud Alfaisal expressed hope that by convoking the next GCC summit in Muscat by the end of 2007, the current difficulties and emerging dangers and risks could have been overpassed. Prince Saud thanked the Omani side for the warm welcome and generous hospitality accorded to the Saudi delegation. In response to a question on the possibility of an all-out war in the region in view of the current unpleasant developments, Prince Saud Alfaisal recalled that the region has witnessed several wars in the past, noting that any act that destabilizes part of the region would affect other countries in the region. On Iranian nuclear file, he expressed hope that matters be solved through negotiations as Iran was seeking to obtain nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. He underscored the importance of stating warrants of such endeavor. He said Saudi Arabia was following the issue with deep concern and profound caution. Prince Saud denied that Saudi Arabia has drawn reservations about the proposed Arab gulf unified currency, hoping that obstacles to issue the new currency be overcome. On his part, Alawe said the King's visit comes within the bilateral relations between the two countries, dashing away reports that the positions of the two countries were sometimes at odds, derailing the GCC developmental march or that the visit comes to eliminate particular obstacles. In response to comments that the u.s. administration has played a negative role leading to the deterioration of the situations in the Middle East, Alawe said the United States is a friendly country and it has been exerting efforts to solve a number of problems in the Middle East, calling on all parties to contribute to solving the problems facing the region, particularly the Palestinian issue and including the establishment of the Palestinian state. He said the new border post between Oman and Saudi Arabia, located in the Empty Quarter, is slated to contribute to the increase in the exchange of commodities, cooperation and facilitation of passenger movements between the two countries. He said two roads will link the post with Oman on one hand and Saudi Arabia on the other. A third road will go directly to Riyadh city, the minister said. In response to a question, Prince Saud Alfaisal said he could not confirm or deny press reports that Adel al-Jubeir, Advisor at the Royal Court, was nominated as Saudi Arabia's next ambassador to Washington. Prince Saud said diplomatic practices are different from those of the press as we have to receive approval from the host country before announcing the name of the proposed candidate. Defending the lack of the press statement on the outcome of the King's visit to Oman from any sign of joint economic or touristy giant projects between the two countries, Prince Saud Alfaisal said the matter lies in the domain of businessmen in the two countries rather than governments. He confirmed that the two countries welcome investments and are ready to provide necessary facilities for businessmen planning to invest in either country. On his part, the Omani Foreign Minister said that there are a number of projects of Saudi investors implemented in Omani free zones, stressing that Omani industrial or free zones are open to Saudi or Omani investors. In reply to another question on the fear of the spread of evens surrounding the region to gulf countries, Alawe said that we in the gulf particularly Oman and the Kingdom have taken all precautions to protect our countries from any harm. It is known that the gulf countries topped by the Kingdom have achieved victory over terrorism in all its forms. Commenting on the topic, Prince Saud said that the two countries supported by their peoples can confront whatever might harm any party. He pointed out that Yemen has a deep-rooted history and it needs an opportunity to make contribution to the interest of this region. It is possible that the Kingdom and Oman have given more attention to Yemen, he said, adding that after the recent meeting of donors in London, all agreed that the program launched in the meeting meets the hopes of the two countries and the council. On Israel's nuclear file, Prince Saud said that Arab stance has been clear that the Middle East and the Arab gulf should be free from weapons of mass destruction and that Israel should subject its nuclear program to the international supervision and eliminate these weapons. He noted that the Israeli program is the reason for the proliferation of these destructive weapons, adding that Israel should be treated as other countries and should not be a private exception before the international legitimacy. As for the Kingdom's role in Lebanon, Prince Saud said we believe in the policy of transparency and there are no Saudi aims with regard to Lebanon. We believe that Lebanese differences should not be solved by confrontation and struggle, but by understanding and resorting to Lebanese legitimacy and constitutional institutions. He hoped that the parties in Lebanon should not repeat the tragic experience of the civil war, noting that this is the content of any contacts with brothers in Lebanon. On the situation in Iraq, Prince Saud said that the Arab stance lies in finding a national reconciliation among Iraqi factions as a basis for a solution to the Iraqi crisis whatever might be foreign intervention, if Iraqi cohesion is secured. It will be a basis for building a stand effective to the achievement of security and stability in Iraq, he said and added that we seek in the framework of the Arab league to find a cohesion and unity among Iraqis. We depend on and cooperate with Iraqis who want Iraq's unity, independence and sovereignty over its territories. Before departing to Oman, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz had deputized Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz to manage the affairs of the country and take care of the interests of the people. This was disclosed in a royal decree of the King. The royal decree said, 'in view of our departure abroad, we have deputized Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz to manage the affairs of the country and to take care of the interests of the people during our absence'. During the visit, The Custodian of The Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz decorated at his guest residence in Muscat Sultan Qaboos bin Saeed of Oman with King Abdulaziz Necklace. On his part, Sultan Qaboos decorated King Abdullah with Oman Civil Medal of the first class, the Sultanate's most prestigious medal. Then Sultan Qaboos held a dinner party in honor of visiting King Abdullah and accompanying delegation. The dinner was attended by members of the ruling family, head of the state's council, Head of the Shoura Council, ministers, and members of the diplomatic and consular corps accredited to the Sultanate of Oman. The Omani Ambassador to the Kingdom Saeed Bin Ali al-Kalbani said that the state visit of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosque King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz to the Sultanate of Oman crowns the fraternal and historical ties binding the leaders and peoples of the two countries. In a press statement following the arrival of King Abdullah in Muscat, al-Kalbani highlighted the deep rooted relations linking his Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Saeed and the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz, noting that the visit aims at developing the bilateral relations between the two countries and discussing Arab and international issues of mutual concern. The Ambassador also highlighted the important role being played by the two countries in the international arenas and their impact in many fields, wishing the visit all the success. |
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