Brussels, Oct. 15 (BNA): Ahmed bin Salman Al Musallam, Speaker of the Council of Representatives and Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Parliamentary Division, chaired a meeting, attended by the speakers and representatives of the Gulf Cooperation Council legislative councils, the GCC Secretary General and Dr. Mohammed Ali Behzad, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the Kingdom of Belgium.
The meeting was held ahead of the meeting between the speakers of the GCC Shura, Representatives, National and National Assembly councils and the European Parliament, scheduled for Friday at the European Parliament headquarters in Brussels.
Speaker Al Musallam said Bahrain’s legislature was committed to strengthening parliamentary cooperation and aligning the positions and visions of Gulf legislative councils and parliaments at Arab, regional and international forums, in line with the vision of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.
He commended the achievements of joint GCC action, supported by the leaders of GCC states. He emphasised that Bahrain continued to support efforts and initiatives to strengthen integration and advance development and prosperity across various sectors, in pursuit of shared GCC goals and the interests and progress of the peoples of the Gulf.
The agenda included an address by the GCC Secretary General, a briefing on GCC-European relations and key areas of mutual interest, and topics for coordination at the summit. Participants exchanged views and coordinated positions on its main themes, particularly economic and trade partnership, Gulf security and freedom of maritime navigation, European security and wider international implications.
The coordination meeting also discussed the draft joint statement and the outcomes of the speakers’ meeting, including proposed Gulf messages and positions to be included in the statement. Participants considered means to ensure that shared Gulf priorities and interests were reflected in the summit’s outcomes, follow up on the meeting’s results, strengthen GCC-European parliamentary cooperation, and improve communication and coordination among Gulf legislative councils on shared initiatives and issues.
The meeting also saw an exchange of views among Gulf parliaments on the issues on the speakers’ meeting agenda. Key topics included turning shared interests into a strategic partnership through open trade and stronger links between regions and peoples; security in the Gulf, including freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea; European security and the wider implications of the Russian war on Ukraine; and parliamentary diplomacy and the future of parliamentary cooperation.
The Parliamentary Division delegation, headed by Speaker Al Musallam includes MP Ahmed Sabah Al Saloom, member of the Council of Representatives and the Gulf-European Parliamentary Committee; Sabeeka Khalifa Al Fadhala, member of the Shura Council and the Gulf-European Parliamentary Committee; MP Hassan Ibrahim Hassan; and Mohammed Ibrahim Al Sisi Al Buainain, Secretary General of the Council of Representatives and Secretary of the Executive Committee of the Parliamentary Division.
A.S, S.E