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'Security, economic issues major concern for GCC'
Tuesday December 07, 2010 02:14:06 PM,
Rahul Dass, IANS
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Abu Dhabi:
Security and economic issues are of major concern to the Gulf
Cooperation Council (GCC), a leading daily said Tuesday, hoping
the regional bloc will be "able to resolve differences and emerge
stronger to benefit the region".
The two-day summit of the six-nation GCC, which began here Monday,
is being held under the chairmanship of UAE President Sheikh
Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Terrorism is high on the agenda of
the summit.
Khaleej Times in an editorial Monday said: "This summit is
particularly significant in terms of the implications of the GCC
states' drive towards joint action in the areas of security,
stability and the economic integration of the regional states."
It said that the summit's agenda shows "there are several security
and economic issues that are of major concern".
"This is especially important given the yet unstable economic
world order and the growing security threat posed by a possible
nuclear arms race in the region. Moreover, the Mideast conflict
and continuing territorial disputes in the Gulf continue to
challenge regional peace and stability."
The editorial observed that though contentions among the member
states continue to exist "there is a growing understanding of the
necessity to remove the major blocks in an effort to reach a more
cohesive regional bloc".
It pointed out that each member state has "a strong
individualistic economic identity and takes its economic decisions
based on that trend denotes discrepancies within the economic
bloc".
"Kuwait for instance has de-pegged its currency from the dollar
unlike other GCC States. This trend is also indicative of further
obstacles in the future that are likely to mar the achievement of
a single currency by 2015 -- the new deadline after the GCC states
failed to do so this year."
The GCC members are Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and
UAE.
The editorial went on to say that "the emphasis on the peaceful
use of nuclear energy for civilian purposes in view of the
aspirations of several member states to obtain it through legal
international channels is a reminder to neighbouring Iran to
abstain from covert illegal means that raise suspicions about its
intent to divert it to military purposes".
"It is hoped that the GCC states are able to resolve differences
and emerge stronger to benefit the region. This is bound to propel
it to new heights in terms of political weightage that will only
enhance it's economic status as a regional heavyweight."
(Rahul Dass can
be contacted at rahul.d@ians.in)
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