Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

GCC Chief Blames ‘Major Powers for Turning Gulf Region into a ‘Conflict’ Zone | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Riyadh, Asharq Al-Awsat- Abdul Rahman AL-Attiyah, Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council [GCC], holds major powers responsible for turning the political climate in the region into one of conflict.

In a statement to Asharq Al-Awsat, Al-Attiyah underlined his rejection of any attempt to turn the region from a point where interests meet into an arena for the balance of powers, saying that, “Some major powers contributed to transforming the political atmosphere in the region to an atmosphere marred with tension and anxiety.”

The Gulf official described the situation in the Middle East as “flaming” due to conflicts and accumulative problems.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat after concluding meetings between the Gulf negotiating team and IAEA experts, AL-Attiyah expressed his rejection of any foreign interference, whether in the internal affairs of the GCC states or those of their Arab neighboring countries.

When asked about the stances of the GCC states on the insurrection in Yemen, which is led by the Tehran-backed Al-Huthi movement, AL-Attiyah said that “Any interference by any side in Yemen’s internal affairs is completely unacceptable.” The Gulf official stressed that the Gulf States, given the political and economic challenges they are facing, cannot be overburdened with additional problems or risk bearing down on the extremely delicate balance of power.

AL-Attiyah added that it is time to draw up policies aimed at formulating effective security solutions on the collective security level. In the same respect, he said that any regional security system “could end chronic issues in a way that guarantees turning the region form an arena of conflict into a field for economic cooperation and dialogue.”

He stressed the need for everything that could boost confidence measures among all the countries of the region, including broadening the sphere of regional dialogues as much as possible in order to involve everyone without exception.