Qatar attends consultative meeting of Arab foreign ministers on “Golan”

QNA/Tunis

Arab foreign ministers concluded their preparatory meeting for the 30th Arab summit in Tunisia Friday, with the adoption of a final draft of the declaration to be submitted to Arab leaders for approval.

Qatar participated in the meeting with a delegation led by HE the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sultan bin Saad al-Muraikhi.

An official source with knowledge of the meeting told Qatar News Agency (QNA) that the foreign ministers’ meeting was dominated by a consensus on most Arab issues on the summit’s agenda despite extensive discussions that took place among the participating delegations on the final draft of the declaration, mainly regarding the wording of the Arab position on the issue of the occupied Syrian Golan Heights.

The ministers agreed to condemn the American position and to stress that the occupied Golan is a Syrian Arab land under the force of international law and international legitimacy.

The source added that a consensus formula is currently being sought to guarantee Syrian rights and to block any attempt to undermine the legal status of the occupied Golan and to reject Israeli sovereignty over it.

The source said the final draft of the declaration will stress support to the Palestinian people in their steadfastness against the Israeli occupation by approving financial support of $500mn to be transferred to the Palestinian National Authority, especially after the suspension of support to the International Agency for Relief and Works of Refugees (UNRWA).

The final declaration will emphasise the centrality of the Palestinian cause in the conscience of all Arab and Islamic peoples and peace-loving forces, the support of the Palestinians in their legitimate struggle for the restoration of their rights and the establishment of their independent state with full sovereignty over its land, with Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with international resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative and the principle of a two-state solution.

According to the source, the situation in Libya was discussed during the meeting, where the ministers affirmed in the draft declaration the importance of achieving a comprehensive political settlement in Libya, restoring security and stability to it and preserving its sovereignty, independence and unity.

The final declaration, in its proposed draft text, stressed the need for the Arab leaders to help the Libyans overcome their differences by calling for reconciliation, according to the “Skhirat Agreement” and the outcome of the work of UN envoy Ghassan Salama.

The source pointed out that the final draft of the declaration will address the Yemeni crisis, especially in its humanitarian aspect and in light of the humanitarian tragedies in Yemen, which, according to the outcome of the meeting, require intensifying Arab efforts to push forward the political settlement process, in accordance with the Gulf initiative and the relevant UN resolutions, to stop the hostilities and to resume the dialogue between the Yemeni parties concerned so as to contribute to the establishment of legitimacy and the restoration of security and stability to Yemen.

The final draft of the declaration is also expected to include economic and financial support for the Sudan to overcome its current plight.

عقد وزراء الخارجية العرب، اليوم، اجتماعا تشاوريا على هامش الاجتماع الوزاري التحضيري للقمة العربية الثلاثين، خصص لبحث موضوع هضبة “الجولان” السورية المحتلة .

شارك في أعمال الاجتماع التشاوري، سعادة السيد سلطان بن سعد المريخي وزير الدولة للشؤون الخارجية.

ويهدف الاجتماع لتنسيق المواقف بشأن بيان عربي مستقل حول “الجولان” سيصدر عن القمة العربية الثلاثين المقرر عقدها في تونس بعد غد، الأحد، إضافة إلى بلورة موقف عربي موحد إزاء إعلان الادارة الأمريكية الاعتراف بسيادة الكيان الاسرائيلي على هضبة “الجولان” السورية المحتلة .