AL follow up committee meets in Bahrain, Moussa visits Kuwait shortly, stresses Libya will not withdraw
Regional, Politics, 5/22/2003

A well- informed source at the Arab League has reiterated news that the AL Secretary General Amr Moussa will visit Kuwait shortly but the source gave no fixed date for this visit which will be of special importance in marking the end of a long difference between Moussa and Kuwait.

The same source indicated that the AL chief has succeeded in convincing Libya not to withdraw from the Arab League, noting that a great deal of the inter- Arab reform project already prepared is in compliance with the Libyan demands.

And the speed in which the reforms are implemented will end the Libyan request to withdraw. A request which surfaces from time to time. The source added that several Arab leaders asked the Libyan leader to postpone the withdrawal request until inter- Arab consultation are made to this effect. They all stressed they will exert intensive efforts to this end. Efforts stem from their care to maintain Arab solidarity, especially under the conditions the Arab nation is passing and over the fact that Libya's withdrawal from the AL will be a great loss that will have grave consequences on the Arab League and the joint Arab work.

Moussa also announced that the Arab follow up committee of the recent Arab summit will be meeting in Manama during the first half of July under the chairmanship of Bahrain, who informed the AL secretariat of an agreement to form the committee from the following states: Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Palestine, Yemen, Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Qatar, Sudan, under Bahrain's leadership.

The agenda of the committee includes following up the implementation of resolutions issued by the recent Sharm Esh Sheikh Arab summit conference, especially concerning developments relating to the Arab- Israeli conflict, the Iraqi issue and the agreement on its work mechanism in a way that it is to be held once every two months at the level of foreign ministers and once a month at the level of permanent representatives for the AL member states.

A high ranking source at the AL said that the consultations failed to reduce committee members number in a way to include only the Arab Troika states Ð the former, current and future Arab League president, as several Arab states asked joining the membership of the committee in its being the main dynamo for the political work on the Arab arena.

Moussa said that the draft US resolution to the UN security council on lifting the Iraqi sanctions is still under consultations and still there are debated thoughts and the final text of the decision is not completed yet. He underlined the importance of finding out a role for the UN in Iraq because there are humanitarian and security cases and unstable political condition.

The source, on the other hand, disclosed that a committee was formed under the chairmanship of the AL assistant secretary general for political affairs Ahmad Bin Hali and the membership of four assistant secretaries and legal experts in order to study all Arab proposals to reform the Arab League.

He said that the committee got all proposals submitted by each of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Sudan and Yemen, noting that the committee held several regular meetings and was able to crystallizing the general framework for the reform process of the joint Arab work.

The sources explained that axes around which view were identical include amending the AL charter especially the voting process of decisions inside the AL in a way to be subjected to majority voting rather than the current unanimous voting process, as well as approving the formation of the Arab court of justice in order to settle conflicts among the AL member states and to form an emergency council composed of several Arab states including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Syria as well as one of the Arab Maghreb states which is not set yet.

Previous Stories:
  Morocco takes part in APU executive committee meeting   (5/21/2003)
  AL chief resumed Arab tour   (5/19/2003)
  Yemeni- Egyptian mediation to keep Libya at the AL   (5/14/2003)
  Moussa denies from Doha Qatari mediation between him and Kuwait   (5/6/2003)
  Moussa to hold an Arab tour, including Kuwait   (4/28/2003)
  Moussa looms to resign because of Kuwait   (4/21/2003)
  Libya's FM talks with Moussa, Hammoud   (3/19/2003)

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