Kuwait: Preliminary meetings for the Gulf summit
Gulf-Kuwait, Politics, 12/18/2003

The foreign ministers and ministers of finance and the economy of the 6 member states in the Gulf Cooperation Council GCC states started in Kuwait yesterday their preliminary meetings for the GCC summit due on December 21 and 22. The summit will deal with the Iraqi issue, economic matters as well as financial and social topics.

Participating delegations said that the 6 states will announce in Kuwait, which hosts the summit for the third time since the second Gulf war, their position regarding Iraq's request to join the GCC. But the GCC secretary general Abdul Rahman al-Ateyah told the Kuwaiti daily al-Seyassah that it is still early to discuss Iraq's joining the GCC.

He explained "regarding Iraq's joining the membership of the GCC is a matter governed by criterion set by the council's constituent." Al-Ateyah added "what is of concern for us at the time being in Iraq is to achieve political and security stability, reconstruction, and reforming the infrastructure and formulating a new constitution that enables the Iraqi people carrying out free elections."

Political analysists said that recent developments in Iraq, the conflict between Iran and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) over the islands, and the Palestinian issue, and the Middle East peace process will be on top of the agenda of the summit."

The preparatory summit also will discuss a proposal on issuing a united passport for the citizens of the GCC member states and a draft project document for "reforming the school curricula" recently approved by the ministers of education. The agenda of the ministerial meeting also includes the question of prospects of economic integration between the 6 states.

It is presumed that the ministers will prepare a report for the summit on the progress attained by the customs federation and currency unification. The agenda includes the work frame concerning steps to be taken to establish an electricity network in the council.

Previous Stories:
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  A united passport for Gulf citizens   (10/23/2003)
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