The Permanent Observer of the Gulf Cooperation Council to the United Nations, Minister Plenipotentiary Suleiman bin Muhammad Al-Anbar, confirmed that the Future Summit is an opportunity to reaffirm common principles, strengthen cooperation on challenges, and move within multilateral frameworks that will be more effective and influential, and contribute to achieving and strengthening peace.

This came during his speech on behalf of His Excellency the Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council at the ministerial preparatory meeting for the “Future Summit 2024”, on the sidelines of the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

He said: We need to reach strong and realistic solutions to the challenges we face, such as: climate change, food security, water security, energy security, promoting education and providing a decent life for certain regions of the world such as the African continent.

He pointed to the most prominent challenges faced by many countries in the region, represented by the interference of other countries in their internal affairs and policies, pointing to the ongoing struggle of the Palestinian people to provide education, health care, sustainable food, and a decent life despite their exposure to oppression as a clear example of this.

He praised the humanitarian aid provided by the GCC countries to the international community, whether emergency humanitarian aid or development aid, which reached more than 90 countries around the world, stressing the leadership of the GCC countries in providing and supporting international initiatives with the aim of achieving sustainable development goals.

He stressed the reliability of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries as a partner in the international community, by playing the role of a fair mediator in regional and international disputes, or cooperating with the international community to develop and provide solutions to common challenges.

In his speech, the Permanent Observer of the Gulf Cooperation Council to the United Nations noted the initiative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to establish the World Water Organization, with its headquarters in Riyadh. With the aim of strengthening global efforts to address water challenges, and with the exceptional role of the United Arab Emirates in organizing the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28), and the wonderful effort made by the State of Qatar in hosting the International Agricultural Expo 2023 in October.

He expressed his hope that the future summit will emerge with a strong partnership between regional and international organizations, expressing the readiness of the General Secretariat of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf to work side by side with international organizations active in this field, based on the rich Gulf partnership experience during the (Covid-19) pandemic. During which we worked together to confront risks, enhance joint coordination, and reduce the health and economic impacts on countries around the world.