The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz and leaders and heads of delegations of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) concluded its two-day session of the 36th session of the GCC Supreme Council at Diriyah Palace in Riyadh today.

The GCC leaders and heads of delegations included Sayyid Fahd bin Mahmoud Al Said, Deputy Prime Minister for the Cabinet's Affairs of the Sultanate of Oman; Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Emir of the State of Kuwait; King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Kingdom of Bahrain; Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of the State of Qatar; and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President of the United Arab Emirates, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai.

King Salman called for completing the procedures to build a joint GCC defense and security system to safeguard the interests of the Gulf states and their people.

On Yemen, the King expressed keenness of the coalition states to achieve security and stability under the leadership of its legitimate government. On Syria, King Salman said that the Kingdom is hosting a meeting of the Syrian opposition as support to them to find a political solution that guarantees the Syrian territorial unity and integrity in accordance with the decisions of the Geneva 1 conference. The King also called on all states in the world to shoulder their responsibility to fight extremism and terrorism and eradicate it whatever may be its sources, stressing the fact that Islam is a moderate religion that rejects terrorism. On the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the formation of the GCC, the King called for proper evaluation of the bloc’s achievements saying “It is an appropriate time to assess the achievements and look forward to the future.”

In his speech, Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim, chairman of the 35th session of the Supreme Council, underscored the need for exerting great efforts in light of the critical circumstances, rapid changes and serious challenges facing the world in general and the Middle East in particular.

GCC Secretary General Dr. Abdullatif Al-Zayani concluded by saying that the two-day summit is being held while the region is witnessing serious challenges that require vigilance and hard work in order to preserve GCC achievements and to seek further integration and solidarity to achieve the hopes and aspirations of the GCC citizens.