Arab FMs to meet on Sunday amid different stances toward Iraq
Regional, Politics, 1/22/1999

Well-informed Arab sources said that the Arab foreign ministers will hold their meeting on Sunday at the headquarters of the Arab League (AL) amid differences in their stances in dealing with Iraq.

Gulf Cooperation Council states are persistent about distinguishing between the Iraqi leadership and the Iraqi people. Syria, the current President of the AL council, says that such a distinction would spoil the AL council and increase inter-Arab divisions. The Egyptian position comes in between, sympathizing with the Iraqi people and rejection of interference in its internal affairs, in reference to rejecting the US ideas on changing the government in Iraq, and asserting the unity of Iraq and its national integrity.

The countries of the GCC, Syria and Egypt included their position toward Iraq in official memorandums the Arab League received several days ago. Arab diplomatic sources said that Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk al-Sharaa asked the Arab League to include on the meeting's agenda an item stating a "comprehensive revision of the Arab situation."

The sources revealed that the AL position backs the Iraqi people and calls for eliminating their sufferings and avoiding any criticism against the Iraqi leadership, but it calls on "Iraq" to fully implement UN Security Council resolutions.

The AL statements, moreover, call upon the US and Britain to abide by international United Nations resolutions and to abstain from taking any decision that violates UN Security Council resolutions, in assertion of the AL position which condemned the recent US-British military strike against Iraq.

The sources stressed that the persistence to describe the forthcoming session as a consultative meeting aims at avoiding the need to release any resolution, and to confine to releasing a statement and convening a press conference by Abdul Meguid at the conclusion of the meeting in which he is to highlight events of the closed-door sessions.

The sources did not rule out that the foreign ministers of the Damascus Declaration states (the GCC members states, Syria and Egypt) may hold a meeting prior to the meeting of the Arab foreign ministers, in order to complete discussions on what was debated earlier in the two meetings held in al-Ghardaqa (Egypt), attended by the foreign ministers of Egypt, Syria, Yemen, Oman and Saudi Arabia.

The sources expected Yemeni Foreign Minister Abdul Qader Bajmal to take part in the meeting.

Previous Stories:
  Meeting of Arab foreign ministers to be convened on time   (1/20/1999)
  Human rights organization calls for halt of media campaigns between Egypt and Iraq   (1/19/1999)
  Meguid: Arab FM meeting expresses League position towards Iraq   (1/19/1999)
  Five-member Arab FMs meeting discusses Middle East peace, Iraqi crisis   (1/15/1999)

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