The Secretary-General of the Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, revealed efforts to hold an Arab-European meeting at the ministerial level on Sept. 18, to discuss the implementation of the Arab Peace Initiative.
In a press conference held at the conclusion of the ministerial meetings of the 160th session of the Arab League Council, Aboul Gheit said that the upcoming talks would be called by the Arab League, the European Union, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan.
He also expressed hope that this effort would yield results in the upcoming United Nations General Assembly in September.
Aboul Gheit said that the meeting “highlights an effort to revitalize the peace process,” noting that the goal “is to encourage the holding of an international conference on the Palestinian file.”
For his part, Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser Bourita, president of the 160th session of the Arab League Council at the ministerial level, stressed that the recent meetings emphasized “the necessity of developing a practical approach for coordinated Arab action in the face of the challenges facing the Palestinian issue and the continuous attacks on the rights of the Palestinian people.”
In the joint press conference with Aboul Gheit, the Moroccan foreign minister said that his country believes in joint Arab action in its practical, realistic and pragmatic aspects, which balances political issues with social and economic files.
He added that his country, during its presidency of the Arab League Council, will seek to give economic and social dimensions their necessary importance, as an essential element in joint Arab action.
