The foreign ministers of four Arab and Gulf states and two European countries took take part in the first "Philia Forum" (Friendship Forum) held in Athens on Thursday. Under the title "Building Friendship, Peace & Prosperity from the Mediterranean to the Gulf," the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, GreeceCyprus, Bahrain, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates discussed strengthening collaborations against regional security challenges and as well as the coronavirus pandemic. Saudi Arabia was represented in the forum by Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan. At the end of the meeting, the forum issued a statement in which the participating ministers affirmed their countries' joint commitment to international law, including the United Nations Charter, United Nations Security Council Resolutions, and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. They also stressed strong commitment to the basic principles such as respect for sovereignty, sovereign rights, independence, territorial integrity of states, peaceful resolution of disputes, rejection of threats or use of force, non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries, and freedom of navigation. The statement also emphasized the awareness of the participating countries, at this critical juncture, dominated by the coronavirus pandemic, of the need to show solidarity and coordinate efforts in order to reduce the repercussions of this health crisis on the economies of countries. It expressed the willingness of the participating countries to enhance results-oriented exchanges, as well as joint actions and initiatives in areas such as energy, innovation, digital economy, civil protection, and people-to-people communication. It expressed a desire to explore the possibilities of increasing cooperation in the fields of science, agriculture, food security, education, academic training, interfaith dialogue, and culture and sports. It emphasized that views were exchanged on major international and regional issues, including developments in the Middle East peace process, Cyprus, Syria, Libya, Yemen, and the Eastern Mediterranean issue. — Agencies
