December 9, 2005

KING ABDULLAH IBN ABDUL AZIZ REVIEWS WITH PRESIDENT BUSH WAYS OF ENHANCING BILATERAL RELATIONS. A SAUDI-SOUTH KOREAN SUMMIT IN RIYADH. CROWN PRINCE SULTAN: RELATIONS BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES HAVE WITNESSED TREMENDOUS PROGRESS SINCE KING ABDULLAH IBN ABDUL AZIZ VISITED KOREA SEVERAL YEARS AGO. THE SOUTH KOREAN PRIME MINISTER: THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA PLAYS A MAJOR ROLE ON BOTH THE POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC ARENAS. SOUTH KOREA SUPPORTS KING ABDULLAH'S INITIATIVE FOR PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST. PRINCE SAUD AL-FAISAL STRESSES THAT THE ISLAMIC SUMMIT IN MAKKAH AIMS AT CONFRONTING THREATS TO THE ISLAMIC NATION. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz made a telephone call to US President George W. Bush. They reviewed bilateral relations in addition to a number of regional and international issues. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz has sent a cable of congratulations to Angela Merkel on the occasion of her election as Germany's new Chancellor. King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz expressed his good wishes to the new Chancellor, and highlighted the existing friendly relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Germany. In Riyadh the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz received at his palace in Riyadh visiting Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea Lee Hae-Chan and accompanying delegation. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques held a meeting with the South Korean Prime Minister, wishing him and his accompanying delegation good stay in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. On his part, the South Korean Prime Minister thanked the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and his rational government for the warm welcome and generous hospitality accorded to him and his accompanying delegation. The Prime Minister conveyed the greetings of President Roh Moo-hyun of the Republic of Korea to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz. On his part, King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz sent his greetings to the president. During the meeting, they reviewed the overall developments at the regional and international arenas, led by the situation in Iraq and developments of the Palestinian issue in addition to aspects of cooperation between the two countries and ways of enhancing them in all fields to the benefit of the two countries and peoples. The reception and meeting were attended by Prince Saud Al-Faisal, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Dr. Mutlab Ibn Abdullah Al-Nafeesah, Minister of State and Member of the Cabinet; and Dr. Musaed Ibn Mohammed Al-Aiban, the Minister of State and Member of the Cabinet, who guides the Korean delegation in this visit. On the Korean side, the reception and meeting were attended by the Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the Kingdom Kang Gwang-won; Member of the National Assembly Ryu Si-min, Member of the National Assembly Yoon Ho-jung; Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Bo Myung-hwan; Vice Minister of National Defense Hwang Kyu-sik; Vice Minister of Commerce, Industry and Energy Lee Won-gul; Vice Minister of Construction and Transportation Kim Young-Duck; and Chief of the Prime Minister's Secretariat Lee Gi-woo. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz received a telephone call from Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. They reviewed issues pertaining to bilateral relations as well as a number of regional and international developments. The South Korean Prime Minister Lee Hae-Chan arrived in Riyadh on a visit to the kingdom. At the airport, he was received by Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General, other princes, ministers and senior officials. The Prime Minister is accompanied by a delegation including a number of South Korean senior officials. Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General, held at his palace a meeting with visiting South Korean Prime Minister Lee Hae-Chan. At the outset of the meeting, Crown Prince Sultan welcomed the Korean Prime Minister, noting the deep-rooted friendship between the two countries. He hoped that such meetings and visits be exchanged and repeated between the two countries. Crown Prince Sultan expressed his appreciation for the Korean Prime Minister for offering condolences on the sad demise of late King Fahd Ibn Abdul Aziz and extend congratulations on the succession of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz. The Crown Prince said the relations between the two countries have witnessed tremendous progress since the visit to Korea by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz several years ago. He called on businessmen in the two countries to work for the development and enhancement of relations for the benefit of the two countries and peoples in all fields. On his part, the South Korean Prime Minister thanked the King, Crown Prince Sultan for the warm welcome and generous hospitality accorded for him and accompanying delegation since his arrival in the Kingdom, noting the great and prominent role of the Kingdom in the Middle East and its important role in hosting the forthcoming Islamic summit. He congratulated the Kingdom on accession to the WTO, saying that the Kingdom is not only an oil leading producer but also an OPEC member who has a leading role in the international economy. It is time for all to enhance cooperation between the two countries, he said, calling on businessmen in the two countries to enhance the development of this relation and cooperation between them. The Korean Prime Minister also congratulated the Crown Prince on the qualifying of the Saudi soccer first team for the world finals 2006 in Germany. During the meeting, they discussed a number of issues of mutual concern, led by the situation in the Middle East in addition to the trade exchange between them. The meeting was attended on the Saudi part by Prince Abdul Rahman Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General, a number of princes, ministers and senior protocol officials. On the Korean side, the meeting was attended by senior officials accompanying the Prime Minister. Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General held at his palace a dinner party in honor of South Korean Prime Minister Lee Hae-Chan and his accompanying delegation. The party was attended by Prince Abdul Rahman Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General; Prince Bandar Ibn Mohammed Ibn Abdul Rahman; Prince Abdullah Ibn Mohammed Ibn Abdul Aziz; Prince Salman Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Governor of Riyadh Region; a number of princes; ministers and senior officials. On the other hand the South Korean Prime Minister Lee Hae-Chan stressed the importance of the Saudi role in both the political and economic arenas. He stressed the respect the Kingdom enjoys on the international scale. The Prime Minister said his country supports the Kingdom's efforts in solving the Palestinian issue on the basis of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques initiative. He said that Souht Korea has expanded its bilateral relations with the Palestinian authority as a South Korean office was opened there in addition to financial help offered from South Korea to the Palestinian Authority to the amount of $ 6 million in addition to $ 5 million in the form of aid offered in 2004, to rebuild Palestinian areas and improve the Palestinian people's living conditions. The South Korean Prime Minister Lee Hae-Chan noted that a decision has been taken with regards to the North Korean nuclear issue during the six party talks of the 4th round of negotiations. He said his country agrees with the international community about the necessity of implementing the NPT treaty and that the UN should push Israel to join the treaty. On Iraq he said there is no timetable for the withdrawal of multinational forces in which South Korea take part, adding that his country is working on the possibility of extending the stay of these troupes in Iraq. On the most important subject on the agenda of his visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Prime Minister said that Petrochemicals and the use of natural gas will be reviewed. He said his country is taking part in the rehabilitation of the oil refineries and water desalination and electricity projects. He stressed that his country has always supported the Kingdom's accession to the World Trade Organization. South Korean Prime Minister Lee Hae-Chan underscored Saudi Arabia's growing role in the Middle East as well as on the world stage. He congratulated the Kingdom for its accession to the World Trade Organization. "Saudi Arabia plays an important role in the world economy," he pointed out. "The Saudi-Korean meeting discussed issues of mutual concern, most importantly the situation in the Middle East, in addition to ways of boosting commercial relations," the Saudi Press Agency said. In his comments, the South Korean Prime Minister said his talks with Saudi officials would focus on investment in petrochemicals and natural gas. "Our country will contribute to renovating oil refineries and building desalination and electricity plants in the Kingdom," Al-Riyadh Arabic daily quoted the Prime Minister as saying. South Korean Prime Minister Lee Hae-Chan promised that South Korea would play a significant role in the transfer of technology and exchange of expertise in the operation and maintenance of power plants. He said South Korea supported the Arab peace plan, originally proposed by King Abdullah in 2002 when he was crown prince. The plan calls for total Israeli withdrawal from occupied Arab territories and establishment of an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital. "Our government strongly supports Saudi Arabia's efforts to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," he added. South Korean Prime Minister Lee Hae-Chan described Saudi Arabia as his country's seventh largest trading partner. South Korea is the Kingdom's third largest trading partner with two-way trade amounting to $10.68 billion last year. He said more Korean companies would enter the Saudi market to expand bilateral trade and investment relations. South Korean Prime Minister Lee Hae-Chan said he had noticed a considerable growth in investments within the Kingdom as a result of soaring oil prices. "We expect Saudi Arabia will achieve tremendous progress in the industrial sector," he added. Meantime World Muslim leaders will meet to tackle the tough issues facing the Muslim world in a two-day summit beginning in Makkah on Dec. 7. The summit follows a September meeting in Makkah where many of the world's leading Muslim scholars and intellectuals helped formulate a new vision for the OIC and to set the agenda for the prestigious summit. Among their recommendations for discussion were Islamic solidarity and joint Islamic action, creation of a poverty fund, institutionalization of Islamic good governance, conflict prevention and confidence-building, terrorism, dialogue and civilization, Islamophobia, political and human rights of Muslim minorities in non-OIC countries. The scholars and intellectuals had also called for the restructuring of the OIC. Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal expressed hopes that the organization would give the Muslim world a chance to speak in a powerful, unified voice and have the best minds come up with the best resolutions to difficult challenges, from Iraq and Palestine to economic and educational issues. King Abdullah extended an invitation during last year's Hajj to convene a summit, the purpose being to review the current state of the Ummah and to explore new horizons for the evolution of a vision that would enable the Muslim world to face up to the challenges of the present day and of tomorrow. Prince Saud said the aim of the Summit is to restore the leading role of Muslim organizations not only in defusing volatile issues, such as terrorism and Iraq, but in ensuring that Muslim positions on global issues get a fair hearing, as well. "We at OIC are trying hard to represent moderation, to represent the real values of Islam, which is peaceful coexistence, and which has been so throughout the history of Islam," OIC Secretary-General Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu said. "It's enshrined in the holy books of Islam that you accept the other; you respect the other, particularly the other Abrahamic religions, Judaism and Christianity. This is part of the Islamic doctrine, as it has been all throughout, and this has been the practice of Muslims for centuries under different nations." Professor Ihsanoglu said the OIC will seek resolutions to problems that don't create more ills than the ones they sought to cure. "There was tyranny, but no terrorists," Professor Ihsanoglu said of Iraq under the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein. "Now, Iraq has become the focus of terrorists, and this movement was not there during the previous regime. In a way, this unhealthy development will breed more terrorists if we don't proceed in a rational way to address these matters." The summit will be preceded by a preparatory meeting of OIC foreign ministers on Dec. 6. Prince Ahmad Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Minister of Interior and head of the Saudi delegation participating in the 24th periodic meeting of ministers of interior of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries received at his guest residence Bahrain's Prime Minister Sheikh Khalifa Ibn Salman Al Khalifa, Second Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammad Ibn Mubarak Al Khalifa and Minister of Interior Lieutenant General Sheikh Rashid Bin Abdullah Al Khalifa. During the meeting, they discussed topics of mutual concern and aspects of cooperation between the two brotherly countries. The meeting was attended by the official delegation accompanying Prince Ahmad. Prime minister Sheikh Khalifa Ibn Salman Al Khalifa of Bahrain received Prince Ahmad Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Minister of Interior and head of the Saudi delegation participating in the 24th periodic meeting of ministers of interior of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries on behalf of Prince Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Interior Minister, and ministers of interior of the GCC countries. During the meeting, Prince Ahmad conveyed greetings of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz and the Crown Prince to premier. On his part, the premier expressed his appreciation of the efforts being exerted by the GCC ministers of interior in bolstering security in the region. The meeting was attended by the official delegation accompanying Prince Ahmad. On the other hand in a press conference held following the conclusion of the Preparation Meeting, Secretary General Amre Moussa of the Arab League of States announced that the Iraqi National Reconciliation Conference's Preparatary Meeting has succeeded by 70% in overcoming the disagreements among the Iraqi political powers and factions. We don't claim we have managed to overcome all disagreements. Issues of discussion were previously subject to rejection by all Iraqi political powers, which never met in person before the meeting. Nevertheless, the rejection has turned into partial acceptance which is a progress in itself. Matters should not be viewed in terms of black or white, he said. We have achieved reasonable success. The meeting has almost reached its goals and the disagreements are now not as they had been before the meeting. This is a first step on the Iraqi reconciliation course, Moussa added. Moussa also told the media that having been for preparation, the meeting has not tackled all issues, yet it dealt with some. Numerous viewpoints should not be overlooked, he pointed out stressing the meetings' success within the frame of objectives previously set. He further announced that the Arab League, in collaboration with the UN, will pursue the implementation of the meeting's recommendations during the next period. In this concern he highlighted the importance of boosting the Arab presence and raising the diplomatic representation level in view of providing much tightened security measures. Referring to the meeting's closing statement, Moussa confirmed it has acknowledged that while resistance is a legitimate right for all peoples, denounced terrorism that targets innocent civilians is not legitimate resistance. He also described the statement as having been clear in demanding a timetable for multinational forces to pullout from Iraq in accordance with the Security Council resolutions and the demands of the Iraqi Government in this concern. Stating that no withdrawals, protests nor reservations have occurred during the meeting sessions, except for what has been said by Shaikh Harith Al-Dary, Moussa stressed that the partaking Iraqi powers and factions are the only guarantees for the on-the-grounds implementation of the closing statement that has gained unanimous consent. In the meantime, Secretary General Moussa stated that the Arab League will appoint its envoy to Iraq shortly and establish its office in Baghdad to pursue the implementation of the closing statement's recommendations. In the same context, he said delegations from Arab League will pay continuous visits to Iraq within the next few weeks to pursue the same, pointing out that the Arab Ministerial Committee on Iraq would hold its first meeting soon to lay out action plans for the implementation of the closing statement's recommendations. Referring to meeting again, Moussa stressed that it has been a significant step as it has furnished for the Iraqi powers and factions, with all their differences, to meet together without mediators, a matter that has led to overcoming 70% of the current problems. Moussa didn't miss to refer to the differences in viewpoints during the meeting sessions due to the incongruence of each power's stance. However, as he stressed, the discussions have nearly compromised the differences. Here we are. This is our message to the entire world and its major powers, Arab League Secretary General Amre Moussa said closing his statements to the media. On the other hand a diplomatic source in the League of Arab States confirmed that the Secretary General has decided to appoint Mostafa Othman Ismail Advisor to the Sudanese President and former Sudanese Foreign Minister as his personal representative in Iraq and that talks are held to prepare his visit to Iraq.