Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, the Deputy Premier and Commander of the National Guard, today chaired the Cabinet’s weekly meeting at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh.
At the outset of the session, the Crown Prince briefed the Cabinet on recent talks held by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz and the Crown Prince with Egyptian President Mohammed Hosni Mubarak, which covered developments in Arab, Islamic and international arenas and the means of enhancing cooperation between the two countries in all fields.
The Cabinet welcomed and affirmed the joint Saudi-Egyptian statement, which said that Arab countries are proceeding on a path of development, modernization and reform in accordance with the interests, values and needs of the Arab peoples, and reject the imposition of a certain pattern of foreign reform on Arab and Islamic countries. The achievement of stability in the Middle East necessitates finding just and fair solutions to Arab and Islamic issues, particularly the situation in Palestine and Iraq. The Kingdom and Egypt agreed on a joint proposal for Arab reform, which will be submitted to the next meeting of Arab Foreign Ministers in Cairo.
The Crown Prince briefed the Cabinet on recent talks, consultation and meetings with the leaders and envoys of other countries, which focused on developments in regional and international arenas.
In a statement to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) following the session, the Minister of Culture and Information, Dr Fouad bin Abdulsalam Al-Farsy noted that the Cabinet was briefed on the situation in occupied Palestinian territories and Iraq. The Cabinet stressed that stability in the region requires just resolutions for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the situation in Iraq; attending to these issues will promote the success of efforts for reform, development and prosperity in Arab countries.
Dr Al-Farsy added that, as part of ongoing deliberations at the International Court of Justice, the Kingdom emphasized the illegality of the segregation wall established by Israel in the West Bank, which blatantly violates the Geneva Convention and other international resolutions. The wall isolates the Palestinians and obstructs all peace initiatives and resolutions seeking a just resolution of the conflict.
The Council then reviewed domestic issues on its agenda, and issued the following decisions:
The Cabinet approved the final accounts of the National Commission for the Protection and Development of Wildlife for the fiscal year 1422-1423H.
The Council of Ministers authorized the Governor of the General Corporation for Technical Education and Vocational Training to discuss with the Philippine side a draft memorandum of understanding, which is to be signed and forwarded to the concerned authorities for approval.
The Cabinet approved the appointment of Osama bin Hamza bin Ali Abu Ghararah as Undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry for Domestic Commerce; Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Mohammed Al-Migaiteeb as Director General for General Expenditure at the Ministry of Finance; and Mohammed bin Omer bin Mohammed Al-Saghan as Director General of the Minister’s Office at the Ministry of Agriculture.
Source: SPA
