Unite to end interference in Iraq, US tells Arab allies
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice yesterday met Arab leaders in Egypt, extracting renewed promises of help in Iraq while reaffirming Washington's commitment to the creation of a Palestinian state.
Rice, accompanied by US Defence Secretary Robert Gates, met with foreign ministers from Egypt, Jordan and the Gulf Cooperation Council states at the start of a regional tour aimed at countering Iran's growing influence, notably in Iraq. "We discussed how to support a unified Iraq where all Iraqis can live in peace and security," Rice said after the meeting which included top diplomats from GCC states Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and the UAE.
With Saudi Arabia accused of allowing Sunni militants into Iraq to fight US forces and Iran accused of equipping Iraqi Shi'ite militias doing the same, the parties in a joint statement called for "an end to all interference in Iraq".
It explicitly called for the prevention of "the transit of terrorists to Iraq" and an end to the "supply of arms and training to the militia and extra-governmental groups" in the war-torn country.
And amid renewed impetus to find a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Rice and the Arab foreign ministers reiterated their commitment to a two-state solution, including an end to Israel's occupation of Arab lands captured in 1967.
Rice also said that a number of initiatives, including an Arab League peace plan, needed to be pulled together ahead of a Mideast peace conference tentatively slated for September.
"We really don't want to have a meeting for the sake of having a meeting," Rice said.
However, Rice and Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit sought to play down the multi-billion-dollar military aid bonanza for Washington's friends in the region, which Iran has accused of "destabilising".
"The US is looking to assure our allies that we are going to be reliable for meeting their security needs," Rice said of the new military pacts worth US$20 billion ($30.26 billion) for Saudi Arabia, US$13 billion (19.67 billion) for Egypt and US$30 billion ($45 billion) for Israel.
The arms package for other Gulf states is reportedly worth at least US$20 billion, although precise figure is still undecided.
Rice told a joint press conference with Abul Gheit that the deals "fall in the long line of American efforts to help ensure security of friends and allies in the region".
Abul Gheit said he was "amazed" at the attention being paid to the arms gifts, "because military assistance to Egypt has been an earlier relation that lasted for the past 25 years".
Rice had earlier dismissed Iran's charges that the arms package would create fear and harm relations between countries in the Middle East. "I think if there is a destabilisation of the region, that can be laid at the feet of an Iranian regime that is engaging in the kind of activities that I just outlined," she said.
On her way to Egypt she accused Iran of fuelling terrorism in Lebanon, backing Shi'ite militias in Iraq, aiding Hamas in the Palestinian territories and harbouring ambitions of acquiring nuclear weapons.
But Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini accused the US of having always had "a special policy of spreading fear in the region and tarnishing existing good relations" between countries in the Middle East."
AFP
Rice, accompanied by US Defence Secretary Robert Gates, met with foreign ministers from Egypt, Jordan and the Gulf Cooperation Council states at the start of a regional tour aimed at countering Iran's growing influence, notably in Iraq. "We discussed how to support a unified Iraq where all Iraqis can live in peace and security," Rice said after the meeting which included top diplomats from GCC states Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and the UAE.
With Saudi Arabia accused of allowing Sunni militants into Iraq to fight US forces and Iran accused of equipping Iraqi Shi'ite militias doing the same, the parties in a joint statement called for "an end to all interference in Iraq".
It explicitly called for the prevention of "the transit of terrorists to Iraq" and an end to the "supply of arms and training to the militia and extra-governmental groups" in the war-torn country.
And amid renewed impetus to find a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Rice and the Arab foreign ministers reiterated their commitment to a two-state solution, including an end to Israel's occupation of Arab lands captured in 1967.
Rice also said that a number of initiatives, including an Arab League peace plan, needed to be pulled together ahead of a Mideast peace conference tentatively slated for September.
"We really don't want to have a meeting for the sake of having a meeting," Rice said.
However, Rice and Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit sought to play down the multi-billion-dollar military aid bonanza for Washington's friends in the region, which Iran has accused of "destabilising".
"The US is looking to assure our allies that we are going to be reliable for meeting their security needs," Rice said of the new military pacts worth US$20 billion ($30.26 billion) for Saudi Arabia, US$13 billion (19.67 billion) for Egypt and US$30 billion ($45 billion) for Israel.
The arms package for other Gulf states is reportedly worth at least US$20 billion, although precise figure is still undecided.
Rice told a joint press conference with Abul Gheit that the deals "fall in the long line of American efforts to help ensure security of friends and allies in the region".
Abul Gheit said he was "amazed" at the attention being paid to the arms gifts, "because military assistance to Egypt has been an earlier relation that lasted for the past 25 years".
Rice had earlier dismissed Iran's charges that the arms package would create fear and harm relations between countries in the Middle East. "I think if there is a destabilisation of the region, that can be laid at the feet of an Iranian regime that is engaging in the kind of activities that I just outlined," she said.
On her way to Egypt she accused Iran of fuelling terrorism in Lebanon, backing Shi'ite militias in Iraq, aiding Hamas in the Palestinian territories and harbouring ambitions of acquiring nuclear weapons.
But Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini accused the US of having always had "a special policy of spreading fear in the region and tarnishing existing good relations" between countries in the Middle East."
AFP
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