Gulf leaders hold Israel responsible for the tension, call for a distinction between terrorism, resistance
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) leaders have condemned the policy of escalation and expansion of the cycle of violence pursued by Israel to push the region into the wake of collapse. They underlined the importance of making a distinction between legitimate resistance of the military occupation and all forms of denounced terrorism.
In their final statement issued in Muscat on Monday evening ( Dec. 31st,2001) the GCC 22nd summit, the GCC leaders stressed that just and comprehensive peace will only be achieved through the restoration of all legitimate rights of the Palestinian people and the establishment of their own independent state on their native soil with Jerusalem as a capital as well as by Israel's complete withdrawal from the Golan until June 4, 1967 border lines and Israel to complete its pullout from the Lebanese territories including the Shebaa farms according to UN security council resolution 425 and releasing all Lebanese prisoners and kidnapped from the Israeli jails.
The statement viewed the speeches made by the US President George Bush and his secretary of state Colin Powell as very important, stressing that in order to achieve the principles stated by American officials, the US has to draw the mechanism for implementation of these principles in compliance with the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people.
The statement stressed that Israel is responsible for the deterioration of conditions in the Palestinian territories because of the policy of escalation pursued by Israel and its violation of peace process principles.
The statement reiterated demanding the GCC to work for making the region free from nuclear weapons and stressed the need of Israel's joining the NPT and to subjugate its nuclear institutions to the International inspection of the International agency for atomic energy.
In their summit, the GCC leaders approved Yemen's joining to several GCC institutions, namely the council of the ministers of health, the education bureau, the council of the ministers of social affairs and labor and the Arab Gulf football championship.
The statement explained that the 22nd summit approved the new economic agreement among the GCC member states to replace the previous one which was approved in 1981 and also decided to start earlier working with the customs federation as from 2003 instead of 2005 as well as to reduce the united customs tariff on all imported foreign commodities.
The GCC 22nd summit which was concluded in Muscat decided to convene its next summit in Doha in December 2002. It was agreed to appoint the Qatari Abdul Rahman al- Ateyah as a secretary general for the council as from March this year in succession of Jamil Ibrahim al-Hujeilan.