Flags Fly High - Manama ready for Summit of Arab Unity

TDT | Manama     

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Preparations for the 33rd regular session of the Arab Summit has been completed by the Kingdom of Bahrain. The Summit will be held on Thursday and will be chaired by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.

To host the delegations from the sister Arab countries, Bahrain has been going through procedures and arrangements based on the directions issued by His Majesty and followed up by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister.

The committee to prepare the Kingdom was led by His Excellency Shaikh Rashid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, the Minister of Interior, through round-the-clock followups to ensure the success of the Arab Summit.

All the major roads and streets in the Kingdom and landmarks have been decorated in view of the Summit, with flags of sister Arab countries and pictures of their leaders adorning the pathways, to welcome the delegates and in reflection of the Arab unity and solidarity in its most wonderful form.

Bahrain has broad support in the Arab world as the country fit to host the Summit, given its approach based on peace, stability, and promotion of cooperation and its foreign policy characterized by balance and rationality.

This makes the Kingdom the most suitable host for the Arab Summit. This spirit was championed by none other than His Majesty the King at his speech in Arab Summits earlier, in which His Majesty pointed out the difficult and serious challenges facing the Arab region and the need to support each other like a single entity.

Priorities

Speeches made by His Majesty at the Arab Summit meetings over the past decades set the priorities for the Arab world, namely to support everything that contributes to unifying the Arab nations and enhancing their strength to meet all challenges.

Through his speeches, His Majesty also stressed the importance of establishing peace and stability in the Arab region and strengthening bilateral and cooperative relations between members of the League of Arab States so as to enable joint Arab action with free will and self determination and in a spirit of collective solidarity in order to establish the stability, prosperity, and harmony that people of the Arab region must enjoy.

His Majesty had highlighted the Palestinian cause as one of the most prominent concerns and priorities.

In his speeches, His Majesty always stressed the need to intensify efforts to reach a comprehensive and just settlement of the Palestinian question and achieve peace based on a two-state solution in accordance with the Arab Peace Initiative, in order to ensure the right of the Palestinian people to establish their independent state.

Given this backdrop, the attention will again be on Manama on Thursday, when His Majesty would deliver the opening speech of the Arab Summit.

Delegations

Yesterday, His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, met the heads of the delegations from various Arab countries that are participating in the preparatory meetings of the Economic and Social Council of the Arab League.

During the meeting, HRH the Crown Prince highlighted Bahrain’s commitment, led by HM the King, to support Arab efforts to enhance comprehensive economic and social integration and coordination to address the changes in the global economy, thereby contributing to achieving economic growth.

His Royal Highness underscored the importance of ongoing progress and development across all sectors, particularly the economic and social sectors, to achieve the joint aspirations and visions of forward-thinking Arab leaders.

The preparatory meetings were chaired by His Excellency Shaikh Salman bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, the Finance and National Economy Minister.

Officials

Ahmed Aboul Gheit, the Secretary-General of the Arab League, and senior officials attended the meeting.

Addressing the meeting, the minister said that the Bahrain Summit aims to bolster Arab unity, foster development, and pave the way for a prosperous and sustainable future for Arab nations.

Shaikh Salman bin Khalifa emphasised that the current global challenges necessitated a unified Arab effort to further enhance economic and social integration in the region.

He said this can be achieved by supporting infrastructure, transport, energy, and food security projects that strengthen the Arab world’s economic capacity and contribute to furthering Arab integration.

Urgent aid

In line with Bahrain’s steadfast position on supporting key regional issues, the minister called for immediate intervention to deliver urgent aid to the Gaza Strip, prevent the escalation of further military operations, protect the lives of innocent civilians, and maintain regional security, peace, and stability.

The Finance and National Economy Minister further emphasized that collaboration between Arab states, international financial institutions, and specialised organisations is crucial to address the deteriorating humanitarian conditions in Palestine.

He noted that this collective effort must support a just, lasting, and comprehensive peace process in the Middle East, ensuring that the Palestinian people obtain their legitimate rights.