Annan to attend Gulf summit in Emirates

It was announced in Abu Dhabi on Thursday that the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan will take part in the l9th summit of the Gulf Cooperation Council states, which will begin in Abu Dhabi on Monday.

Annan's participation in the summit will highlight the crisis between Iraq and the UN. Well-informed sources in Abu Dhabi said the United Arab Emirates extended an official invitation to Annan to participate in the inauguration of the summit. Invitations were also extended to Arab League Secretary-General Esmat Abdul Meguid and international figures, including Nelson Mandela, to attended the inauguration ceremony.

The sources added that Annan's participation will place the repeated crisis between Iraq and the UN at the top of the list of matters to be debated at the GCC summit.

The UN chief is expected to define the position of his organization towards developments that may arise in case of a new crisis erupts between Iraq and UNSCOM, directing warnings to Baghdad on the consequences of creating a crisis with the UN inspectors and the need to lift sanctions and eliminate the suffering of the Iraqi people.

The sources stressed that Annan will meet in Abu Dhabi with his personal envoy to Iraq, Prakash Shah, to discuss relations between the UN and Iraq.

Mandela, on the other hand, is expected to give a speech before the inaugural session of the Abu Dhabi summit.