Doha: Leaders of the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries are to hold their 28th summit in Doha on Monday where they are expected to take key decisions for the future economic, social and security outline of the region.
The much-awaited monetary union, the pursuance of a joint nuclear programme and security concerns amid the escalation of Iran's nuclear ambitions and the violence in Iraq will top the agenda of the two-day summit.
"The summit is important given the regional situation, mainly the continuing deterioration of the situation in Iraq and the escalation between Iran and the West over its nuclear programme," the secretary-general of the GCC, Abdul Rahman Al Attiyah, told the media ahead of the meeting.
The six leaders are expected to discuss how to streamline the creation of a common market and address obstacles slowing down the creation of the monetary union, as well as the re-evaluation of their currencies vis-Ã -vis the dollar or a less likely drop of their dollar peg, following a similar decision by Kuwait two months ago.
However, security and economic issues are not the only topics on the agenda.
Experts from the general secretariat of the GCC expect that the summit will take a decision to kick-start the railways project, linking the six GCC countries, WAM reported. If endorsed, the work would officially start by 2010.
Social questions
Emerging social questions such as the rising number of expatriate residents within the Gulf borders, the growing unemployment rates among Gulf nationals, the need for an integrated labour law that would address the rights and duties of the booming foreign labour force are urgent topics whose solution cannot be further delayed, analysts have warned.
Meanwhile, the event is attracting record international attention not only because of the sensitivity of the issues under discussion and their repercussion for the region, but also because of a significant twist in the relations between Qatar and Saudi Arabia marked by the much-awaited arrival today of Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz, who refused to participate in the Doha summit of 2002 over a row with the Qatar-based Al Jazeera network for its controversial coverage of Saudi affairs. The summit was preceded yesterday by meetings and consultations of the finance and foreign affairs ministers which put the final touches to the programme of the talks on the agenda today.
See also Page 35
