ShareThe 28th Arab Summit, which was held on March 29 in Jordan, concluded its meetings with a closing statement that is worth examining. Twenty-two member countries of the Arab League participated in this summit, except for Syria, which has been suspended by the League since 2011. The summit was due to be held in Yemen, but because of the political situation there, the summit was shifted to Jordan.
The summit's discussions do not mean much to Arab citizens, but the final statement, conclusions and results of the meetings and what can be transformed from a declaration and agreement to an effective action plan is what matters. I think the Arab Summit ended with a clear success for the Gulf states and their interests. This clearly upset some powers in the region.
There is always a common understanding that Arab summits have no positive impact in dealing with crises in Arab countries, with many considering them routine events without offering anything new. Despite the pessimistic expectations by some Arab media, this summit came up unexpectedly with a new stand. I believe the closing statement was bold and clear and showed the position of the Gulf states and Arab support. Of course, the statement did not appeal to some here, so they criticized the summit and its resolutions, although they were not specifically named.
Let me explain why I think this summit was a success. Firstly, I think there is no harm in reiterating support for an old and urgent issue such as the Palestinian case, which means standing with the demands of the Palestinians, even with the existence of new issues such as terrorism and Islamophobia in the Arab and international arena. Most importantly, the closing statement expressed Arab leaders' readiness to achieve a "historic reconciliation" with Israel in return for its withdrawal from the territories occupied in the 1967 war.
All agreed on the importance of ending the long conflict on the basis of the two-state solution, which guarantees the establishment of a Palestinian state. So no more shouting, condemning and demanding the exit of the Israelis from Palestine as an only solution for peace - the Arabs are looking at the case realistically and calling for what can be achieved through possible negotiations, and not the impossible or imaginary.
Arab leaders also expressed their support for a political solution in Syria as well as the legitimate government in Yemen. Here I see the vision of the Gulf states - a position that disturbed the Houthis and their supporters, who rushed to reject the closing statement of the Arab summit. The status of refugees was also on the agenda, and everyone agreed to renew their commitment to support Arab countries that are hosting refugees to enable them to bear the cost of hosting them. They agreed to put forward the issue of adopting new programs to support these countries at the Brussels conference to be held on April 5.
The gathering also reaffirmed the sovereignty of the United Arab Emirates over its three islands, supported its right to all peaceful measures to restore sovereignty over its lands and called to invite Iran to find a peaceful solution to the issue through direct negotiations or the International Court of Justice. Finally, the summit supported all efforts to defeat "terrorism" everywhere, and this means the support of the international coalition against terrorism and the Security Council resolutions in this regard.
I believe that there are various purposes behind Arab summits, which is the confirmation of the collective views of Arab issues and agreements despite possible differences, because such summits open the lines of communication and agreement. I believe that the recent Arab Summit achieved its agreed goals on fundamental and important issues.
By Muna Al-Fuzai
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