GCC Secretary-General: First Ministerial Meeting with Switzerland Marks a New Phase of Partnership

New York, September 22 (KUNA) -- GCC Secretary-General Jassem Al-Bedaiwi affirmed that the first joint ministerial meeting between the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the Swiss Confederation lays the foundation for a new phase of partnership and opens broader horizons for developing relations between the two sides. The GCC Secretariat General stated that this was said in a speech delivered by Al-Bedaiwi during the joint ministerial meeting held on Monday evening in New York, chaired by Bahrain’s Foreign Minister, Abdul Latif bin Rashid Al Zayani, who holds the current rotating chairmanship of the GCC Ministerial Council, and Swiss Federal Councillor and Federal Department of Foreign Affairs Head Ignazio Cassis, with the participation of the foreign ministers of the GCC states.

Al-Bedaiwi noted that Gulf-Swiss relations have witnessed significant development this year, marked by the signing of a memorandum of understanding to establish a strategic dialogue between the two sides last January. He pointed out the preparation of a draft joint action plan covering cooperation in political, cultural, developmental, and humanitarian fields.

On regional issues, Al-Bedaiwi highlighted the ballistic missile and drone attacks carried out by Iran and its proxies against GCC states since February 28, which resulted in human and material losses and targeted critical infrastructure. He warned that the disruption of international navigation and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz have impacted the world through rising energy prices and supply chain disruptions, emphasizing that the security of waterways in the Gulf region is an international, not merely a regional, concern.

He called on Iran to fully comply with UN Security Council Resolution 2817, to permanently and unconditionally halt attacks, to ensure they do not recur, and to restore navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab al-Mandab to their pre-February 28 levels.

Al-Bedaiwi reiterated the centrality of the Palestinian issue and the necessity of ending the Israeli occupation and establishing an independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with the Arab Peace Initiative and relevant international legitimacy resolutions. He expressed the GCC states’ hope that Switzerland will recognize the State of Palestine, thereby supporting international efforts to realize the two-state solution.

Concluding his speech, the Secretary-General expressed his anticipation that this inaugural ministerial meeting would mark the launch of a new phase in GCC-Swiss relations, reflecting a shared will to elevate these ties to more ambitious levels. (End) A.S.T. / N.S.A.