DOHA, Dec 22: The six Gulf monarchies turned on Iraqi President Saddam Hussein Sunday, ending their two-day summit here by condemning his “threats” against them but making no mention of the US war buildup.
Kuwait had called on the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to adopt a tough stance on a Dec 7 speech by Saddam, who apologized for the August 1990 invasion of the country but also uttered what the emirate considered to be a serious threat.
Saddam’s “message contained pure fabrications and incitement against the Kuwaiti government and support for terrorist acts in the country,” said the summit’s final communique, read by GCC Secretary General Abder Rahman Attiya.
“This message constitutes a threat against Kuwait and the members of the GCC and an interference in their affairs,” Attiya said.
The leaders of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates recalled the need “to respect the independence and territorial integrity” of Iraq and for “no interference in its internal affairs.”
At the same time, they urged Iraq to cooperate with UN disarmament inspectors to ensure a rapid end to the crisis.
With 65,000 US troops in the region and another 50,000 due to arrive next month, the council sidestepped taking a formal position on a possible war. In remarks afterwards, however, Qatar’s foreign minister expressed hope that it could be avoided while acknowledging there was little that GCC countries could do to stop it.
“The council hopes there will not be a strike against Iraq, and we are working with all our strength, but we have little influence over this,” Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem bin Jabr al-Thani said.
“The capacity of the GCC states is limited, and the US presence does not serve only to defend our countries but also to defend the interests of the United States and we understand that,” he told a press conference.
Kuwait is base to 15,000 US troops, currently carrying out live-fire exercises near the Iraqi border. The emirate has repeatedly said it is opposed to any US-led strike on Iraq without a UN mandate.
And summit host, Qatar, which hosts 4,000 US soldiers at an air base that is also one of the largest US arms dumps, is tipped as a likely launching pad for any US-led war on Iraq.
US military personnel are also deployed in Saudi Arabia, mostly at the Prince Sultan air base in Al-Kharj, south of Riyadh, and the United States Navy’s Fifth Fleet is headquartered in Bahrain.
A boycott of the summit by Saudi Arabia’s crown prince and de facto ruler, Prince Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, did nothing to ease tensions. Saudi Arabia is the key power in the GCC, but was annoyed by what it considered disparaging comments on Qatar-based Al-Jazeera television.
The Saudi delegation, like those of Kuwait and Bahrain, was led by its foreign minister. The United Arab Emirates was represented by Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashed al-Maktoum, who is both vice president and prime minister.
Only the summit’s host, Qatar’s emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, and Omani Sultan Qaboos represented the highest levels of their country’s decision makers.
However, that did not prevent the GCC from approving the statutes of a common defence council, which had been agreed on in principle at the December 2000 GCC gathering.
The members committed themselves to “defend any member state that is the victim of a foreign threat or danger,” the communique said.
The GCC also agreed to launch its planned customs union from January 1, the latest step toward the economic integration of the six-nation bloc.
“The leaders blessed the birth of a customs union of its members from January 1, 2003,” said Attiya.
“From the entry into force of this union, the GCC countries will constitute a single internal zone, in which all restrictions on commercial transactions will be eliminated, and a single five percent customs duty will apply on imports” from outside the bloc, the communique said.
The GCC plans to set up a full common market by 2007 and a single currency by 2010.
The bloc has a combined oil output of around 13 million barrels a day and more than 50 percent of the world’s proven crude reserves.
Turning its attention elsewhere in the region, the GCC condemned the “savage actions” of the Israeli army in the Palestinian territories and called for an end to that occupation so that the Palestinians can have the right to self-determination and establish an independent state, with Jerusalem as its capital.
The bloc also voice its support for the United Arab Emirates in its dispute with Iran over three islands in the Gulf occupied by Tehran since 1971 and claimed by Abu Dhabi.—AFP
