Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Saud Al-Faisal led the Kingdom’s delegation to the 95th session of the foreign ministers of the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) which concluded in Riyadh today with a press statement. The communiqué, after congratulating Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdulaziz on his recovery and wishing him good health, addressed the need for solidarity to enable the GCC to confront the challenges it is facing. It also expressed appreciation of the Kingdom's initiative in holding the Counter-Terrorism International Conference in Riyadh in February, 2005; and welcomed the resulting Riyadh Declaration, particularly the proposal made by Deputy Prime Minister and Commander of the National Guard Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdulaziz that an international center be set up to combat terrorism.

The communiqué went on to praise the outcome of the 15th joint ministerial meeting between the GCC and the European Union (EU); clarified the GCC’s position on a number of issues, including Iran's occupation of the three islands belonging to the United Arab Emirates; expressed the hope that the international conference on Iraq due to be held in Brussels on June 22 would have positive results; and as for the Middle East peace process, called on the United States, Russia, the European Union, the United Nations and the international community to continue their efforts to activate the ‘roadmap’ and the Arab Initiative.

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