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Short Takes:
The foreign ministers of the European ministers meeting in Brussels today decided to lift the remaining sanctions left on Libya except those pertaining to banning of weapons. In a statement, the EU foreign ministers extended an invitation to Libya to hold negotiations with the EU concerning Libya 's joining of the free trade Zone which is scheduled for the countries of the Mediterranean. Go

Avigdor Kahalani, head of the Israeli Third Way party, confirmed his readiness to hand over the Golan for peace with Syria. Israeli observers regarded Kahalani's statement as worth noting, as he was calling for continuing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan and opposed holding talks with Syria. Go

The meetings of the trade ministers of the Group of 77 are starting tomorrow in the Moroccan capital, Rabat, for three days to discuss coordinating the positions of the group's member states in the November meetings in the US city of Seattle of the World Trade Organization. ArabicNews.com learned that the most important subjec to be discussed include adopting a unified stance among the developing countries in negotiations regarding agriculture, services and intellectual property that will start in the year 2000, in addition to liberating investments, freedom of competition, electronic trade and customs fees. Go

Egyptian - Mexican economic talks are to be held today in Cairo to establish economic cooperation agreement between the two countries in light of the visit of Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister Salama Shater in August within his tour of Latin American countries, including Chile and Uruguay, in which number of symposa were held to inform the society of businessmen and the investors about the Egyptian investment atmosphere, the Egyptian products these markets need, and the possibility of increasing the trade movement between Egypt and these countries. Go

The agreement on the headquarters for the Arab Contractors' Union, which comprises 18 Arab states, was signed yesterday in Cairo. Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister for Organizations' Affairs Samir Seif El-Yazal said the union's presence in Egypt will give it a strong push regarding the progress of the Egyptian contracting sector. He added that it will contribute to developing technology in the Arab contracting sector as well as developing work mechanisms in this important economic sector. Go

The Sudanese Cabinet yesterday approved a trade agreement to expand commercial activities between the two states and provide facilities for commercial cooperation regarding customs fees, the establishment of joint projects, exchanging exhibitions, and sharing training and expertise, Saba reported. Go

The problems between Morocco and Algeria "are a mere summer cloud, and the difficulties will finally be overcome," said the Moroccan minister in charge of the Arab world and the Maghreb, Abdeslam Znined. Morocco and Algeria are bound by neighborliness ties and it is natural that simple or difficult problems arise between neighbors as they arise between the members of the same family," Znined said. Go

King Mohammed VI has sent a message to president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia. The message will be delivered by Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Mohamed Benaissa, who arrived in Tunis on Sunday evening. Go

Sultan Qaboos of Oman on Sunday received a message from Argentine President Carlos Menem pertaining to bilateral relations. The Gulf News Agency said the special envoy for Sultan Qaboos, Tweini Shahin, received the message during his meeting on Sunday in Muscat with the Argentine ambassador accredited to Oman. Go

Dubai will host an international conference on desertification on February 12 -15, 2000, which is to include the attendance of more than 50 graduate students and exhibits by more than 100 companies, Khaleej Times reported. Go

The Egyptian department of exhibitions and organizing markets (a governmental body) is organizing the first exhibition for Egyptian products in Accra, the capital of Ghana, on September 16 - 22 with the participation of 235 Egyptian companies that work in all economic fields, aiming at opening new markets to Egyptian exports in the African states. Go

The chamber of the Egyptian cinema industry decided to establish offices for distributing Egyptian films abroad instead of relying on non-Egyptian external distributors. Go

Bahrain is to allocate BD84 million in its budget for next year to go toward education, according to Education Minister Abdulaziz Al Fadhel, Gulf Daily News reported. Go

A Moroccan economic statement issued today confirmed that Moroccan phosphate sales have increased by 5.7% during the first half of this year to $680 million compared to last year. Phosphates are one of the most important items on which Morocco depends in its exports, as it has 75% of the world's supply of phosphates, and it is regarded as the largest exporter of phosphates and their products in the world. Go

Bilateral trade between Japan and the Gulf states went down by 23.2% last year in comparison to the $31.3 billion reached in 1997. This came in a press statement issued today by the Japanese foreign trade organization, Jetro, in Cairo. The statement added that this drop is related to low petroleum prices last year. Go

Funds from aid sent from Iraq to Turkey will be used to build a housing complex to be called the Iraqi Red Crescent Village, Iraqi News Agency reported, adding that construction was to begin by today. Iraq has pumped $10 million worth of oil to Turkey to fund aid after Turkey was hit last month by a devastating earthquake. Go

The US European Command said today that Iraqi anti-aircraft artillery (AAA) northeast and northwest of Mosul fired on jets patrolling the northern Iraq "no-fly zone." The jets responded by attacking "an air-defense-warning site south of the city of Mosul and an AAA site northwest of that city." No indication was given of whether the sites were inside the no-fly zone. Go