Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriate, Ayman Safadi, warned today, Wednesday, that the crises facing the Arab world are "worsening" in a way that threatens Arab security, while Arab efforts to address the crises are not sufficient.
Safadi made the remarks while addressing foreign ministers at the 153rd session of the Arab League Council at the ministerial level. He said the Arab nation cannot remain on the sidelines while others fill the void created due to their absence.
"Our causes are the ones that we had discussed in our previous session, and in many other extraordinary sessions, the only difference is that the crises worsened, and our collective role in efforts exerted to resolve them is still limited, with little or no effect," Safadi said.
He added: "Our Arab security is in danger, generations in Arab countries torn by crises are lost as they get used to the sight of war and destruction, and grow in environments of despair and deprivation, where there are no schools, healthcare and hope, extremism creeps through oppression, and external forces fill the vacuum created by our absence."
On the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, he said that "the chances of achieving a just peace that we stressed as our strategic choice are being killed by illegal Israeli measures that impose new painful fait accompli on the ground every day. Israel announces its intention to annex a third of the occupied West Bank and to build new settlements that steal Palestinian land and steal hope for a just peace that people accept."
The minister said: "Our Arab consensus is that the establishment of an independent and viable Palestinian state on the lines of June 4, 1967 with Jerusalem as its capital is the only way to achieving peace."
He stressed the Hashemite Custodianship's role in countering attempts aimed at changing the Arab, Islamic and Christian identity of Jerusalem's sanctities.
"Our positions and our statements that are based on international legitimacy resolutions are faced by an Israeli moves that care less about international law and no longer sees the principle of land for peace as a basis for a solution," Safadi said.
On the Syrian crisis, Safadi said it is "still a catastrophe with no real prospect of ending, the biggest victim is the fraternal Syrian people and the Syrian state."
"We are more impacted by the crisis and its bloody consequences, but our collective role in the efforts to end the crisis is the least. Syria has become an arena for conflicts of regional and international interests, and we stand on the sidelines while others impose their roles and agenda," Safadi said.
The top diplomat pointed out that "the situation is not better in Libya, as the regionalization and internationalization of the crisis has become a reality at the expense of a fraternal country and at the expense of our Arab national interests."
He said: "The crisis in the Arab Gulf, whose security is a cornerstone of our collective security, is growing while Iraq is being pushed towards chaos that threatens the progress made in reconstruction and stability after the victory it had achieved against terrorist gangs."
Safadi stressed that "our first central issue necessitates that we act collectively towards the international community to counter the Israeli occupation and work to launch real and effective negotiations to resolve the conflict on the basis of a two-state solution in accordance with international legitimacy resolutions and the Arab peace initiative."
"If we do not act, the international community will not act," he added.
Safadi stressed that "we must also act collectively to activate the Arab role in efforts to reach a political solution to the Syrian crisis to preserve Syria's territorial integrity and cohesion, and restore its security, stability and role in our joint Arab action system."
"Remaining on the sidelines is no longer an option. The price of abandoning our role is paid by the Syrian Arab and state, and we will all pay the price by leaving others to determine the future paths of our region."
Safadi said: "We are a few months away from the upcoming regular Arab summit in Algeria, and our difficult status quo and the enormous challenges we face force us to prepare for this summit in a practical way that makes it a station to breathe life in our joint Arab action and take practical decisions that contribute to solving crises and protecting our common interests."
"We can achieve this if we assume our role and go to that summit with initiatives that restore to us the leadership role that our interests necessitate regarding our Arab issues," he stressed.
In addition, on the sidelines of the pro-Arab organization's meeting, the Foreign Minister chaired a meeting of the Committee of foreign ministers of states signatories to the agreement for the establishment of a free trade area between the Arab Mediterranean countries, best known as the "Agadir Agreement."
The meeting witnessed the signing of the documents for the accession of the Republic of Lebanon and the State of Palestine to the "Agadir Agreement."
Talks about establishing a free trade zone agreement were launched in Morocco in May 2001, with Jordan, Tunisia, Egypt and Morocco declaring their desire to establish a free trade zone among them with the encouragement of the European Union, as the "Agadir Agreement" was signed off in Rabat on February 25, 2004.
On the sidelines of the summit, Safadi met with his Lebanese, Egyptian, Kuwaiti, Bahraini, Palestinian and Tunisian counterparts on ways of enhancing cooperation and regional developments.
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