Arab FMs meet in 112th Cairo session
Regional, Politics, 9/13/1999

The Arab League started its semi-annual meeting on Sunday in Cairo.

Foreign ministry officials from 21 Arab states and the Palestinian government are expected to discuss common Arab issues.

Palestinian President Yasser Arafat briefed members of the participating delegations on the revised Wye accord signed on Sep. 5, according to which Israel and the Palestinians pledged to draw up a framework for final peace talks by Feb. 15 and to complete the process by September 2000.

Among the other 46 points on the agenda are a proposal made by the United Arab Emirates and a UAE - Palestinian call to ban Arab participation in an upcoming Israeli exhibition at Disney's Epcot Center in Orlando, Florida. It is reported that the exhibition depicts the Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. And the UAE has already announced it will boycott Disney products if the exhibit opens.

In an inaugural speech, AL Secretary General Esmat Abdul Meguid called on Israel to give up of deception, to resume peace negotiations on the Syrian track from the point where they broke off and to implement resolutions which provide for Israel's total withdrawal from the occupied Golan Heights to the June 4, 1967 border lines.

He stressed the importance of formulating an integrated Arab vision for the future that can cope with the great challenges imposed on the Arab states. This can be realized through a strategic work plan which gives top priority to the work to purify Arab atmospheres and unify Arab ranks.

Abdul Meguid asserted the importance of Israel's implementation of UN Security Council resolutions 242, 338 and 425 through its withdrawal from the Golan, South Lebanon and the Palestinian territories, since implementation of these decisions is the grounds for achieving a just and comprehensive peace in the region.

The AL chief continued that the peace sought by the Arabs is a just and comprehensive peace that provides for restoring all Arab rights and ensuring that the region is free from weapons of mass destruction.

He reiterated the need for strengthening Arab solidarity and accelerating the establishment of the common Arab market. He also called for lifting the siege and sufferings imposed on the people of Iraq.

The chairman of the session, Iraqi Foreign Minister Muhammad Said al-Sahaf said in his speech that the two "no-fly zones" in the northern and southern parts of Iraq are in contradiction with international resolutions. He added that the US and Britain do not have any authorization from the UN Security Council in this respect.

Al-Sahaf indicated the bad results of the sanctions imposed on Iraq, adding that the sanctions claim the lives of thousands of Iraqi children every month.

The Iraqi FM asserted the right of the Arab states to a just and comprehensive peace, asserting his country's support for Syria to restore the whole of the Golan and for Lebanon to liberating its south and the Western Bekaa. The Iraqi minister also voiced his country's backing for the struggle of the Palestinian people and the establishment of an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital.

On the sidelines of the meeting, Syrian FM Farouk al-Sharaa reviewed, the agenda of the meeting and bilateral ties, separately with each of Egyptian counterpart Amr Moussa, Jordanian counterpart Abdul Illah al-Khatib. A similar meeting was held between al-Sharaa and Iraqi Foreign Minister Muhammad Said al-Sahaf.

Previous Stories:
  AL ministerial council holds session on Sunday   (9/10/1999)
  Arab consultations prior to AL council's 112th session   (9/9/1999)
  AL calls for uniting Arab activities   (9/7/1999)

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