At the invitation of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Saeed of Oman, the 22nd Summit of the Supreme Council of the GCC was held in Muscat on Sunday and Monday, under the chairmanship of Sultan Qaboos and attended by Their Majesties and Highnesses: Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Emir of Bahrain, Prince Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince, Deputy Premier and Commander of the National Guard in Saudi Arabia, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmed Al Jaber Al Sabah, Kuwait Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister.
The meeting was also attended by GCC Secretary-General Sheikh Jamil Al Hujailan.
The GCC leaders, extended good wishes to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Fahd bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia, on the 20th anniversary of his accession to the throne, and expressed delight over the recovery of Kuwait's Emir, Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmed Al Jaber Al Sabah, wishing him continued health and happiness.
The GCC Supreme Council reviewed the joint action process at various domains, and expressed satisfaction at the progress achieved in this respect. It affirmed the strong determination to push forward to attain the hopes and aspirations of the people, and to foster security, stability and development of the GCC states, along with bolstering the concept of Gulf citizenship in all domains.
The GCC Supreme Council reviewed reports and recommendations of the ministerial council, the ministerial committees and the secretariat general in this respect.
The council endorsed the economic integration amongst the member states, with a view to replacing the unified economic agreement.
The council studied the steps taken for the establishment of the GCC customs union, and decided to reduce the unified customs tariffs to five per cent on all imported goods by January 1, 2003.
The council approved the unified system and law of the GCC customs, endorsing its executive regulations. It also decided to establish the GCC monetary union, and to release the single currency by January 2010.
The council approved the law and system of the agricultural quarantine, following its amendment to meet the requirements of international standards. The council reviewed reports regarding the development of the GCC standardisation and specifications to guarantee establishment of the customs union.
The council reviewed the progress in the joint plan to develop educational curricula, calling upon the GCC educational ministers to accelerate the implementation of the plan.
The GCC Supreme Council endorsed the resolutions of the 20th meeting of the interior ministers, held in Manama on October 29-30, 2001, regarding the council's efforts to facilitate free movement of GCC citizens and commercial traffic among member states.
The GCC Supreme Council reviewed the work progress in the military cooperation, and approved the formation of a joint defence council.
The GCC Supreme Council decided to approve a security strategy on combating extremism coupled with terrorism, and a law on money-laundering.
The GCC Supreme Council discussed the situation between Kuwait and Iraq, affirming the necessity of Iraq's commitment to the resolutions of the UN Security Council.
The GCC leaders tackled the issue of Iran's occupation of the UAE's three islands, affirming all support to the steps taken by UAE in order to restore sovereignty over the islands through peaceful means.
The GCC Supreme Council reviewed the deteriorating situations in West Bank and Gaza, triggered by the obstinate stance of the Israeli government against the Palestinian people.
The council asserted full support to the Palestinian Authority chaired by President Yasser Arafat and called upon the Palestinians for solidarity with their legitimate leadership in order to enhance the national unity of the Palestinian people.
The GCC states confirmed readiness to contribute with an active role in building the Palestinian establishments and infrastructure and called the international community to work on achieving just and comprehensive security and stability
Text as released by the offcial Emirates news agency. www.albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
