MP calls for actual steps to protect Arab interests

KUWAIT: National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanem speaks to the press yesterday. - KUNA

KUWAIT: All six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member nations will be represented when chief lawmakers from the Gulf region assemble for a conference in Kuwait next week, the country's National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanim said yesterday. Al-Ghanim told reporters that Gulf parliamentary delegations will arrive in the country today, five days before the conference takes place. He expressed hope that the conference, sponsored by His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, would be productive. Kuwait's chief lawmaker also wished the nation well as the world welcomes a new year. Al-Ghanim announced last week that Kuwait would be hosting a conference involving parliament speakers from across the Gulf region on January 8.

In another development Kuwaiti and Arab Parliament (AP) MP Ali Al-Deqbasi has called for moving to a practical phase to take definite steps for the protection of Arab interests. Talking to KUNA after the conclusion of an AP session in Cairo, Al-Deqbasi said that he had submitted a paper on developing Arab joint action. It was supported by a majority. The AP issued a resolution condemning the continuity of Iran's threats to the Arab national security through supporting armed militias seeking to penetrate it. The resolution was taken after hectic discussions on the content, he said. It represents a "quantum shift" in AP's performance, he stressed.

Asked about the rejection of Iran's interference in the internal affairs of the Arab countries, and the reservation by Iraq's representative on the resolution, Al-Deqbasi said that the AP includes various views, but finally "It passed with an overwhelming majority." Meanwhile, the AP issued a resolution denouncing the recent US President Donald Trump's decision recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital, the Kuwaiti legislator said. Al-Deqbasi called for actual and practical steps toward an Arab unified stance on the issue. He lamented the lack of such stand on Libya or Syria.

Arab Parliament's plan

Meanwhile, the Arab Parliament has adopted a work plan that will seek to see Sudan removed for the list of states sponsors of terrorism. An adhoc committee has been formed for the purpose, chaired by AP Speaker Dr Meshal Al-Salmi. According to the plan, the AP will move on the Arab, regional and international levels, focusing on Sudan's active role on the three scenes, Al-Salmi. He referred to Sudan's efforts for combating terrorism, both in the Arab and Muslim world "as a pivotal state in the 41-nation Saudi-led Islamic Military Alliance against terrorism." Sudan is also a member of the Arab Coalition Supporting Legitimacy in Yemen, and it cooperates effectively on the African and international scenes to combat terrorism, Al-Salmi said. He pointed to Khartoum's positive and active role for countering regional interference in the internal affairs of the Arab countries, as well as for achieving security and safety in Africa. The AP will work in coordination with the Sudanese foreign ministry, the Sudanese National Assembly (parliament) and the Arab League, on the broad lines of AP's moves. - Agencies