22nd AGCC Supreme Council Meeting starts in Muscat

GCC Foreign Ministers meeting on December 29, 2001agreed up on draft resolutions on economic integration

Muscat -- The 22nd session of the AGCC summit started today evening at the Al Bustan Palace Hotel, Muscat under the Chairmanshilp of Oman;s King Sultan Qaboos. Leaders of the six GCC countries will take decision on going ahead with the plans to form a Joint Economic Bloc in the Gulf region, which will control nearly half of the world's oil resources. The GCC leaders are also likely to request both India and Pakistan to desist from mlitary confrontation and seek an amicable settlement.

Bahrain's Emir Hamad bin Issa al Khalifa who arrived for the summit told reporters that the GCC should go ahead with the economic integration plan and work to achieve and strengthen solid economic integration in the Gulf. The six GCC countries are likely to endors a customs union agreement by January 2003, to unify customs tariffs at five percent. The plan to introduce a common currency and economic union are also seriously discussed.The crucial meeting not attended by all the heads of states of six GCC countries will take crucial decisions about economic and defence integration of six GCC countries.

Six GCC foreign ministers held a preparatory meeting on Saturday and discussed a host of economic, security and social files. According to GCC Secretary General Shaikh Jameel bin Ibrahim al Hujailan the Muscat Summit will approve the advancing of the implementation of GCC customs union from 2005 to 2003 and the unification of customs tariffs at 5 per cent - crucial measures that will be the culmination of the GCC economic integration.

The summit will also discuss ways to amend the unified GCC economic agreement to make it more flexible to the Gulf economic developments. The GCC states are planning to have one customs tariff to replace six different systems existing in six countries. There will be one customs entry point with a unified tariff vis-à-vis the outside world. The customs union will contribute to lifting restrictions and speeding the movement of goods between member states whose products will be treated as having the same national identity, he said. The Muscat Summit would also discuss the constitution of a supreme defence council in implementation of the GCC unified defence pact.

Another crucial point to be taken up by the Summit is the Indo Pak conflict, which has reached a critical stage.Even though three leading Arab leaders viz. the UAE President, the Emir of Kuwait and the King of Saudi Arabia, are not attending the meeting for "health reasons' the meeting discussed issues related to international terrorrism and may set up a fund for reconstructing Afghanistan. Afghanistan and tension between India and Pakistan, Israel-Palestinian issue etc are also discussed in great detail.