JEDDAH, 20 May — Bahrain’s King Hamad ibn Isa Al-Khalifa met here yesterday with Saudi leaders and pledged his full support for the Saudi-inspired Arab peace initiative which offers normal ties with Israel in return for its total withdrawal from the occupied Arab land.
The Bahraini leader held talks with Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd and Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, on the Middle East situation in the backdrop of continuing Israeli aggression on Palestinians. The Saudi Press Agency said King Fahd and King Hamad also discussed major regional and international developments and ways of strengthening bilateral cooperation.
“The initiative of Crown Prince Abdullah for peace in the Middle East has laid the basis for any Arab move to achieve the just and desired peace within the framework of international law,” the Bahraini king said.
Sheikh Hamad described the initiative, endorsed as an Arab peace plan in Beirut in March, as a good opportunity to achieve a just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East that would resolve the political conflict between Arabs and Israelis.
In his arrival statement, Sheikh Hamad said Bahrain had offered its support for the peace plan from the beginning to put an end to the Israeli aggression and contain the explosive situation in the region.
The Bahraini king noted the positive outcome of Prince Abdullah’s recent visit to the United States, in terms of reviving the Middle East peace process and emphasizing the importance of setting up a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital. The Bahraini ruler urged the international community to intervene and put an end to the Israeli aggression against the Palestinians. King Hamad said Saudi Arabia and Bahrain wanted to see stronger ties among members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) which also include Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and the United Arab Emirates.
SPA said Prince Abdullah and Sheikh Hamad held a one-on-one meeting and discussed the situation in Palestine, the Arab peace plan and other major Arab and international issues.
Meanwhile, King Fahd yesterday received a message from Pakistani President Parvez Musharraf. The message was handed to the king by Pakistani minister of science and technology.
