JEDDAH: The Saudi-Qatari Coordination Council held its first meeting in Riyadh yesterday to explore prospects of strengthening political, economic, trade, investment, cultural and social cooperation between the two GCC neighbors.
The meeting was co-chaired by Interior Minister Prince Naif and Qatari Crown Prince Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani. The Qatari crown prince said the formation of the coordination council reflected the farsightedness of the two countries’ leadership.
“We hope that the council will strengthen the brotherly relations between our two countries and promote bilateral cooperation in all areas,” the Saudi Press Agency quoted Sheikh Tamim as saying on arrival in the Saudi capital for the meeting.
The council meeting was expected to witness the signing of several bilateral agreements and memoranda of understanding in order to promote cooperation in political, economic, commercial, cultural and information fields.
The Saudi side in the council comprises Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal, State Minister Musaed Al-Aiban, Finance Minister Ibrahim Al-Assaf, Culture and Information Minister Iyad Madani and Commerce and Industry Minister Abdullah Zainal Alireza.
In a statement on the eve of the historic meeting, Qatari Ambassador Ali bin Abdullah Al-Mahmoud said the meeting is significant as it would open a new era in bilateral relations.
Saleh Al-Turki, chairman of the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry, said the Saudi-Qatari Council would strengthen cooperation between private sectors of both countries. “The Council of Saudi Chambers is ready to provide any assistance to boost the efforts of official agencies in order to strengthen economic and commercial cooperation between the two countries.” He said the visit of Crown Prince Sultan to Doha in March paved the way for opening a new chapter in Saudi-Qatari relations.
In a similar statement, Abdul Rahman Al-Jeraisy, chairman of the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the council would promote joint investment projects. He emphasized the need to remove all obstacles facing bilateral economic cooperation.
“The business community in Saudi Arabia is looking forward with optimism that the council meeting will deepen economic and trade relations between the two countries,” Al-Jeraisy said.
Saudi Arabia is considered the second largest trading partner of Qatar with the volume of their total trade exchange reaching SR5.54 billion.
