Qatari PM and Arab League Chief Speak on Doha Arab Summit

Doha, March 29, SPA -- Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister
Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani said Sunday the Arab
Foreign Ministers approved at a preparatory meeting on Saturday, the
agenda of the Arab Summit Conference, due to open in Doha on Monday.


Addressing a joint press conference with Arab League's Secretary
General Amr Moussa, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim said major issues were
also discussed including the Palestinian problem and the Mideast
peace process, the situation in Sudan, the current Arab situation and
means of clearing the Arab atmospheres.


The Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister said the proposal of
convening an emergency summit in Khartoum in solidarity with Sudan
needs discussion at the ministerial meeting and that an agreement was
reached with the Sudanese minister of state for foreign affairs on
the phrase regarding this issue.


On the number of the Arab leaders who will attend the Summit, the
absence of the Egyptian President and the presence of Sudanese
president Omar al Bashir, Sheikh Hamad said he had no idea, but most
of the leaders will take part in the summit.


He added that he personally went to Sudan and repeated the
invitation to President Al Bashir to attend the summit, reaffirming
that Qatar welcomes the Sudanese President and all the Arab leaders.

Regarding the absence of the Egyptian president, Sheikh Hamad said :
We wished that the Egyptian president would take part in the summit
in order to contribute with his bright ideas to resolving the Arab
complex and chronic issues, but the decision is his and we respect
his decision.


On the repercussions of the International Criminal Courts (ICC)
arrest warrant for the Sudanese President, he said security and peace
necessitate that International Criminal Court (ICC) and UN Security
Council should reconsider this decision which further aggravates the
situation in Darfur and would not lead to resolving this problem,
calling on the international community to settle this issue.

On his part, the Secretary General of the Arab League, Amr Moussa
commended the initiative of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques
King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud for Arab reconciliation at Kuwait
summit.


He said that the Saudi Monarch's initiative came following the Arab
deteriorating situation after Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip,
which led to strained inter-Arab relations and a political unrest in
the region, describing the initiative as a pleasant surprise for all.



He added that in light of this initiative and the meetings held
on the basis of this initiative, the Arab situation has moved from
the atmosphere of unrest and despair to an atmosphere of hope and
optimism.


--SPA