Qatar renews offer to host mini-summit

HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani with Kuwait Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Jaber al-Sabah and Saudi Crown Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz at the Arab Summit in Kuwait yesterday.

QNA

Kuwait City

Qatar yesterday renewed its call for a mini-Arab summit to achieve Palestinian reconciliation.

Addressing the opening session of the 25th Arab summit, HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani said Qatar was ready to host the Palestinian reconciliation conference.

The Emir urged Palestinian leaders to end the state of division among them and place the supreme national interest above all other considerations. He suggested the formation of a transitional coalition government that would carry out the constitutional and executive tasks to reinstate the national unity.

Sheikh Tamim, the chairman of the previous 24th session of the Arab summit, reiterated in his address that the Palestinian cause and the Arab-Israeli conflict were the most “pressing challenges” facing the Arab Nation, underlining security and stability in the Middle East would only be reinstated through a “fair settlement based on international and Arab legitimacy resolutions”.

He held Israel accountable and responsible for continuing the conflict through its non-adherence and evasion of implementing international resolutions, its procrastination and adding new terms in each round of negotiations.

Sheikh Tamim underlined the importance of a just and peaceful settlement but said the continuation of settlement activities and attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians, the lack of the negotiating references and raising of the ceiling of the Israeli conditions had been blocking progress in negotiations.  

He stressed that Israel should recognise and admit that the sole solution for ending the Arab-Israeli conflict and achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting peace would be through its complete withdrawal from all Arab and Palestinian territories and establishing an independent Palestinian state with Al Quds Al Sharif, the holy city of Jerusalem, as its capital.

Sheikh Tamim called upon all Arabs to work for ending the unfair siege on Palestinians in Gaza and open crossings to enable them lead their life smoothly like all other people.

HH the Emir referred in his speech to the decision, adopted by the previous Arab summit in Doha and which came at Qatar’s request, to establish a fund to support Jerusalem with a capital of $1bn.

HH the Father Emir had then announced contributing to a quarter billion dollars to the fund, he said.

Sheikh Tamim yesterday renewed commitment to pay the amount donated for the founding of the Qatari fund to support Jerusalem, pledging to work “in co-ordination with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in this respect”.

He held the Syrian regime responsible for the failure of negotiations for ending the Syrian crisis, reiterating that suffering of Syria’s children was a stigma and a smirch to the international community. He stressed the need to take serious steps as per  Arab League resolutions and international references to solve the crisis and realise the aspirations of the Syrian people who had already paid dearly for their freedom.  

He called for a “comprehensive dialogue” in Egypt to achieve political stability and insisted on good ties with Cairo.

“We wish Egypt, our elder sister, political stability and all the good for its people,” said Sheikh Tamim.

“We stress on the brotherly links we have with Egypt,” he said.

Sheikh Tamim said he hoped that stability in Egypt would be achieved through “a comprehensive dialogue” between the government and all parties.

He congratulated the “brothers in Tunisia for achieving their great constitution and their search for compromise”.  He also congratulated “our brothers in Yemen for their wisdom in choosing the path of dialogue towards building a modern state and laying the foundations for its system, and to maintain the unity and sovereignty of their country”.

He also “highly appreciated the achievements of the brotherly Sudan for establishing peace and security in Darfur”.

The Emir further said that despite the continued difficult and complex situation in Somalia, “we appreciate what our brothers in Somalia have achieved and their steps for rebuilding the state institutions and the rule of law and in the right way towards the restoration of national unity after decades of war”.

Touching on the situation in Iraq, Sheikh Tamim said: “It is about time for Iraq to get out of the cycle of rifts and violence and that cannot be achieved by sidelining segments of the population, or accusing it of terrorism, if they demanded equality and participation.”

“It is not appropriate that those who fail to preserve national unity to accuse other Arab countries of supporting terrorism in their country,” he said.

He called for renewed efforts to strengthen pan-Arab integration.

He said: “In the context of the concept of unity and integration I emphasise the need to renounce fanaticism, sectarianism, and regionalism of all kinds, and valuing the diversity enriching our societies to maintain citizenship as the basis of affiliation to our nations.

“I would like also to mention, in this context, our experience in the Gulf Co-operation Council and the need to develop and upgrade it to live up to the aspirations of our people and to enable the Co-operation Council contribute to strengthening of the potentials of the entire Arab nation, and to become a pillar of its renaissance.”

HH Sheikh Tamim returned to Doha yesterday evening from Kuwait. The Emir was accompanied during the summit by a high-level official delegation.