Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz today chaired the Cabinet’s weekly meeting at Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah.
At the outset of the meeting, the King briefed the Cabinet on consultation with leaders and officials of Arab, Islamic and friendly countries regarding recent regional and international events, particularly the escalating crisis in Palestine.
In a statement to Saudi Press Agency (SPA) following the session, the Minister of Culture and Information, Dr Fouad bin Abdulsalam Al-Farsy, said that the Cabinet reiterated its condemnation of the Israeli decision to expel President of the Palestinian National Authority Yasser Arafat from Palestinian territories, stressing that this decision will lead to a total collapse of the peace process. The decision constitutes a dangerous escalation of the crisis in the region, and violates international law and resolutions of international legitimacy.
The Cabinet reiterated the Kingdom’s appeal to all peace-loving countries to exert utmost efforts to support the rights of the Palestinian people to end the occupation of their territories, and to establish an independent state with Al-Quds (Jerusalem) as its capital. It lamented the constant Israeli aggressive practices that undermine efforts to implement the ‘road map’ for peace in the region.
On the Iraqi issue, the Cabinet reiterated the keenness of the Kingdom to promote the unity, sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Iraq. The Cabinet expressed its hope that efforts by the United Nations, the Arab League, and the Iraqi transitional Government will stabilize the situation in Iraq, and that the formation of a sovereign, constitutional government would guarantee the rights of all Iraqi people, regardless of their ethnic or religious loyalties.
The Cabinet then discussed a number of items on its agenda, and issued the following decisions:
The Council of Ministers endorsed the final accounts of the Supreme Commission for Tourism for the fiscal year 1421/1422H.
The cabinet approved the bill of exchange of benefits between the Civil and Military Retirement Allowance System and the Social Insurance System, which aims to resolve complications when private sector personnel, who are subject to the social insurance system, move to work for public establishments, which are subject to the civil and military pension system and vice versa. The new law allows personnel who enjoy benefits of the government civil or military retirement allowance system or the private sector social insurance system to have their subscriptions transferred if they move from the one system to the other. The law stipulates that the former subscription cannot be deposited in the system to which the beneficiary is moving, unless he has spent no less than one year there, and has received no refund premiums or pension from the system that he is leaving. The age of the beneficiary must not exceed 59 years. The executive regulation of the system will be issued by the Minister of Finance, in cooperation with the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, within 60 days of the law’s validity. The law will be valid effective from 60 days after the date of its publication in the official Gazette.
In accordance with the Cabinet’s directives, the General Commission for Investment will become a member of the National Commission, which is responsible for implementing the agreement banning the production, storage and use of chemical weapons.
The Council of Ministers approved the agreement for encouragement and protection of mutual investment between the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the government of the Republic of Indonesia, and authorized the Minister of Finance or his deputy to sign the agreement.
The Cabinet approved an arrangement between the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the U.S. Administration for cooperation on the ‘Globe’ environmental program.
The Cabinet endorsed the final accounts of the Ports Authority for the fiscal year 1421/1422H.
Source: SPA
