MANAMA, 20 December 2004 — The leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries meet today in the capital of Bahrain for the two-day 25th GCC summit. The king of Bahrain, Sheikh Hamad ibn Khalifa Al-Khalifa, announced to the media on Saturday that the summit would be named after the late UAE leader Sheikh Zayed ibn Sultan Al-Nahayan who passed away last month. Bahrain presides over this year’s summit.
“The late Sheikh Zayed was known for his belief in the unity and goal of the GCC since its establishment in Abu Dhabi in 1981,” said the press statement given to the media. The statement also said that the late sheikh would always be remembered for his wisdom and humanitarian work.
The king’s decision to name the meeting, “Zayed Summit” further implies the love and respect the people and leadership of Bahrain have for the late UAE leader who was among the founders and supporters of the GCC cause.
On behalf of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd, Prince Sultan, second deputy premier and minister of defense and aviation, will lead the Kingdom’s delegation to the summit, the royal court in Riyadh announced yesterday.
Leading the UAE delegation for the first time is Sheikh Khalifa ibn Zayed Al-Nahayan who was chosen as successor to the late UAE leader. Also in the UAE delegation is the crown prince of Dubai Sheikh Muhammad ibn Rashed Al-Maktoum.
Vital economic topics such as GCC common market, monetary union and single currency will top the agenda of the GCC annual summit today, according to Abdul Rahman Al-Attiyah, secretary-general of the six-member group. Leaders are also expected to discuss the situation in Iraq and its effect on neighboring GCC countries in addition to political, educational, security, and defense issues.
According to the Saudi Minister of Transport Jabarah Al-Seraisry, Saudi Arabia will present a report at the summit to discuss a future railway line that will link Saudi Arabia with neighboring Gulf countries.
Last year’s summit which concluded in Kuwait discussed important issues in economy, energy, military cooperation, as well as other issues that concern GCC countries.
On the issue of occupied UAE islands of Abu Moussa, Greater and Lesser Tunbs, the GCC leaders described the meetings between the UAE and Iranian officials in this regard as positive, saying such deliberations would help boost bilateral relations and assist in maintaining security in the region.
The GCC Supreme Council last year expressed its firm position of support for the UAE and its sovereignty over its three islands and regional waters and airspace, considering that they are an integral part of the UAE.
The council praised the efforts of Saudi security forces in thwarting terror attacks in Makkah during Ramadan, as an attempt to spread fear and chaos in our society, the statement said.
On attempts by certain media outlets to mix Islam with terrorism, the council affirmed its refusal of such attempts, calling not to hold Islam or Muslims responsible for acts that are far from the spirit of the religion.
It affirmed its declared solidarity with the people of Iraq and the suffering that they were undergoing due to the security situation in that country, the communique said.
The council rejected the idea of dividing Iraq, stressing the need for the country to maintain its sovereignty, independence as well as non-interference in the nation’s internal affairs, calling on Iraq to carry out the same ideals.
Addressing economic issues, the council last year reviewed progress in the customs union, which came into effect at the beginning of this year, and stressed the need to make all the relevant decisions to facilitate trade and remove obstacles.
The council also reviewed the joint GCC market, which was approved during the last summit and is to be implemented by 2007 at the latest, confirming that equal treatment will be provided to all GCC member states.
The council also approved a unified anti-dumping law, as well as compensation and protective measures.
The statute of a Gulf Standards and Specifications Authority, to be based in Riyadh was also approved. In the oil sector, the council expressed keen interest in stable global oil market and in maintaining a balance in supply and demand for suitable prices that will prove beneficial to both producers and consumers.
It underlined the need to step up work on the GCC power grid and instructed the ministers of transport and communications to conduct a feasibility study for the railway project to link all six member states.
Despite several summits held in the past, GCC countries have failed to finalize a draft that would enable all Gulf citizens to travel freely between all six member states. Currently citizens are obliged to produce their passports at entry points of GCC. Furthermore, no serious steps have been taken to unify the GCC currency.
Meanwhile, Bahraini authorities stepped-up security around the Ritz Carlton Hotel and Spa yesterday, where the GCC foreign ministers met and more than 600 GCC delegates had arrived to take part in the Sheikh Zayed GCC Summit.
Barbed wire also stretched along the Seef District beach, where the hotel is located, as coast guard units armed with machine guns guarded the sea front. Police patrols had also been increased in the area and along the routes leading to and from the airport and to the summit location, but there was limited visible presence of armed men and vehicles guarding the hotel and routes.
Journalists residing in The Gulf Hotel number close to 300, mainly from Arabic speaking television and print media.
Officials had also stepped up security around the hotels with police backing up hotel security in doing vehicle searches, and metaldetectors being used to scan visitors.
Security authorities had held a number of security drills in the past week to prepare for the summit with armed units and traffic officials rehearsing the preparations to escort and provide security for the delegations.
