KUWAIT CITY, 25 October 2007 — Crown Prince Sultan, who arrived here yesterday, held the first round of talks with Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah on major regional and international issues and explored ways of strengthening bilateral ties. “The talks focused on the Palestinian issue and the situation in Iraq,” the Saudi Press Agency said, adding that the Bayan Palace meeting was attended by Riyadh Gov. Prince Salman and other princes.
In a statement on arrival, Sultan said his visit was within the framework of continuous consultations between Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah and Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah. He underscored the deep-rooted relations between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. “These historic relations created by our fathers and grandfathers will get stronger and stronger with the passage of time,” he added. He emphasized King Abdullah’s desire to strengthen Saudi Arabia’s relations with Kuwait and the other Gulf Cooperation Council states.
Earlier on arrival in Kuwait City, Sultan and his delegation were given a red carpet welcome by Sheikh Sabah and senior Kuwaiti officials. At the same time, Prince Turki ibn Sultan, assistant minister of culture and information, stressed the significance of Prince Sultan’s visit, adding that it would strengthen the GCC in order to confront challenges and crises.
Saudi Ambassador to Kuwait Abdul Aziz Al-Fayez said the royal visit reflected the close relations between the two GCC member states. “Saudi-Kuwaiti relations are a model for bilateral ties,” he said.
Speaking to Kuwait’s Al-Rai Arabic newspaper on the eve of his visit, Prince Sultan emphasized the Kingdom’s efforts to strengthen the GCC, which includes Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and the UAE in addition to Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Sultan also spoke about Iran’s nuclear standoff with the West and emphasized the need for keeping the Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction. “We urge all countries in the region to respect all international resolutions that impose controls on nuclear programs,” he said and hoped the standoff would end peacefully.
Sultan reiterated the Kingdom’s determination to flush out terrorists and commended the Saudi security forces for their pre-emptive operations to crush Al-Qaeda militants. He also called for global efforts to eradicate any terrorist ideology from people’s minds. He said Saudi Arabia would not allow any Saudi militant to travel to Iraq to fight alongside resistance groups against the US-led occupation forces. “If some Saudis are found in Iraq, they might have gone through entry points other than those along the borders of the two countries,” the crown prince said.
