At a press conference at the end of the meeting on Friday night, Prince Saud Al-Faisal, the Saudi foreign minister, said the meeting had been "fruitful and the consultations were serious and realistic."
Prince Saud said the joint declaration released at the end of the meeting was aimed at resolving the Iraqi problem and enabling the Iraqi people to determine their future. Prince Saud pointed out that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia would not intervene in the domestic affairs of Iraq and, at the same time, it would not tolerate the intervention of others in its domestic affairs. He noted that the Arab countries would continue to support the lifting of the sanctions imposed on Iraq. "However, Iraq is now under an occupation. The demand for the lifting of sanctions should come at a time when Iraq is ruled by a legitimate government which represents the Iraqis."
"In line with the fourth Geneva convention, the occupying forces should shoulder their responsibility for the security of Iraq and the safety of the Iraqis and their property," Prince Saud said. "Moreover, the participants of this meeting have demonstrated their readiness to extend to Iraq all possible assistance so as to enable the Iraqis overcome the crisis."
Prince Saud praised the stance of Egypt vis-à-vis the Iraqi crisis, and said Egypt constitutes the heart of the Arab world, and nobody can deny the sacrifices made by Egypt for the service of the Arab causes.
Prince Saud went on to say that the issue of sending Arab forces to Iraq to contribute to ensuring order and stability would depend on the desire of the Iraqis. He said "the member states of the Arab Gulf Cooperation Council will undertake a program for providing Iraq with the required assistance." "In addition, there is a Saudi program for assisting Iraq," he noted. Prince Saud affirmed that Turkey had not raised at the meeting the issue of the possibility of establishing a Kurdish state in Iraq. He noted that the meeting was held in Riyadh in line with the desire of all participating parties, and disclosed that Kuwait had not asked for a discussion of the issue of the prisoners of war (POWs).
Prince Saud said the occupation forces have no right to exploit the Iraqi natural resources.
Source: Various SPA News Releases
