By NNN-KUNA,
Manama : The foreign ministers of the GCC countries plus two plus one wound up their meeting here, stressing on regional peace and stability.
The parties participating in the meeting affirmed their commitment to achieving regional stability, peace and prosperity, according to the final communique, called Manama Declaration, Monday.
They called for meetings to be held like the January 2006 meeting in Kuwait, the July 2007 meeting in Sharm El-Sheikh and the UN September 2007 meeting, which all mulled over stability in the region.
They reiterated support for necessary settlements to a peace agreement between the Palestinians and the Israelis on the basis of the Annapolis Conference commitments and relevant international principles, according to the communique.
The conferees condemned terrorism, extremism and sectarian violence, pointing to the Riyadh Declaration in February 2005 which rejected all notions and thoughts that instigate hatred and violence and permit terrorist crimes.
They were also committed to creating a region where diverse and various groups can live peacefully and safely and stand united against irresponsible acts that capitalise on communal and religious divergences to instigate tension.
The foreign ministers of the GCC member countries, Egypt, Jordan and the US showed support for economic development, competitiveness in opened-up markets, and broader trade and investment.
They stressed the need for all countries to revamp educational and cultural opportunities, to achieve higher educational levels, to notch up scientific and technical accomplishments and to buttress and shore up the principles of understanding, benevolence and dialogue.
They opposed the spread of nuclear weapons in the region in breach of the non-proliferation treaty (NPT), but favoured the peaceful civil use of nuclear energy.
The conferees also vowed to continue working together to seek a sound global economy that could serve the national interests of states.
Following the conference, Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmad Al Khalifa told a joint news briefing with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that the meeting set guidelines for finalising significant issues in the future.
The conferees came up with a common vision of the participating parties to work and consult together as partners and friends.
He said that they had also stressed the importance of such meetings, which could lead to stability and security in the region.
Al Khalifa noted that the important thing in the meeting was that it was attended by Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari. Iraq will be a key and permanent member of coming meetings, he said, pointing out that the Bahrain meeting had discussed Gulf security and the Middle East peace process.
The Bahraini foreign minister also said that his country was carefully pondering over the possibility of opening an embassy in Iraq, but he voiced concerns over posting Bahraini diplomats to Iraq under the volatile security situation there.
For her part, Rice hailed the Gulf meeting, saying that Iraq’s neighbours had taken a “good step forward” by pledging to do more to include the country in regional affairs. She said that Iraq would now routinely attend some Gulf Arab meetings, which signalled Baghdad’s reintegration into regional politics after the US-led invasion in 2003.
Rice said the meeting had discussed several other issues including Israeli-Palestinian peace talks and Lebanon.
She said that some Arab countries showed a desire to have permanent representatives in Iraq. “A number of countries around the table talked about their desire of having permanent representation in Iraq,” Rice told the news conference.
“I do believe that it’s a process which will move forward,” she said.
Rice said she would push hard for Arab neighbours during the Kuwait meeting of Iraq’s neighbours to “meet their obligations” and step up financial and diplomatic support that has not been forthcoming since the 2003 invasion.
About USD 66.5 billion of Iraq’s debt has been written off, with the bulk of that by the Paris Club members, according to State Department estimates this month. Of the estimated USD 56 billion to USD 80 billion debt that remains, more than half is owed to Gulf countries, the department said.
Concerning the Palestinian issue, she said there was an opportunity to find an Israeli-Palestinian peace settlement by the end of this year, stressing important progress in the outcomes of the Annapolis summit.
Rice added that the Arab peace initiative could be viewed as a regional partnership between the Arabs and Israel.
However, she called on the Palestinian Islamic Resistance (Hamas) to prove that they really wanted peace by denouncing violence, stopping rocket-firing at Israeli towns and recognising earlier Palestinian obligations.