JEDDAH, 20 December 2003 — Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, will lead the Kingdom’s delegation to the GCC summit which starts in Kuwait tomorrow.
The summit of the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council will focus on terrorism and education as well as a spate of economic issues including monetary union and the single currency.
The GCC leaders are expected to approve a joint agreement on combating terrorism. Kuwait’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Muhammad Al-Sabah has said the accord would be presented to the leaders for endorsement.
“Our countries are being targeted by attempts to undermine their security, and the member states will work together to fight terror,” the minister told a press conference.
Kuwait, edgy after a series of terror scares, boosted security measures to the highest level yesterday ahead of the annual meeting. Tanks, armored vehicles and hundreds of soldiers armed with machine-guns have been deployed on a number of roads and vital installations, mainly around the huge state guest house compound of Bayan Palace where the leaders will stay and meet during their two-day gathering.
Special units from the emirate’s police, army, the National Guard and forces protecting the emir, in addition to hundreds of plain-clothes and secret service men, are taking part in a large-scale security plan.
Interior Minister Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah said earlier this week that a comprehensive security plan was in place for the summit and the Gulf Cup soccer tournament Kuwait will host from Dec. 24 to Jan. 11.
Security measures are heaviest in and around Kuwait International Airport for the leaders’ arrivals and departures.
Tanks and armored vehicles encircled the airport, which adjoins an air base used by US forces in Iraq. Roads between the airport and Bayan Palace will be closed for almost the entire duration of the summit and motorists have been advised to use alternative routes.
Police have also set up checkpoints in several areas, especially at night, checking motorists’ IDs and searching suspect vehicles. Journalists were prevented from covering the Gulf foreign ministers meeting on Wednesday for security reasons and a hotel in downtown Kuwait City housing the summit’s media center has been turned into a military-like facility.
Fishing has been completely banned in the emirate’s territorial waters along its 210-km coastline though the conference center is 15 km away from the sea. The police force, the army and the National Guard have been put on alert with normal annual leave canceled.
Sheikh Muhammad said the security accord was reviewed and approved by the GCC interior ministers and has been finalized by a committee of experts. He said the leaders are also expected to approve a charter for educational reforms in the member states. “This will be an essential factor to prevent deviant ideas and stop our children falling prey to them,” he said.
The GCC groups Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain and the UAE.
“The GCC states hope to see a peaceful regime in Baghdad that respects its neighbors and human rights,” the minister said.
He announced that Oman’s Sultan Qaboos will not attend the summit for “personal reasons” but did not provide details.
GCC Secretary-General Abdul Rahman Al-Atiyya, meanwhile, ruled out the possibility of the Gulf alliance admitting new members when asked whether it was likely Iraq would join the body.
Atiyya admitted that the GCC customs union was facing snags, but said these were not difficult obstacles and would be overcome. He also said the monetary union and single currency would be implemented in 2005 and 2010 respectively as planned.
The customs union, launched in January this year, is an important step toward the next phase of establishing a common Gulf common market, for which a timetable will be worked out. The summit is also expected to discuss a GCC power grid project and a joint oil pipeline plan.
— Additional input from agencies
