Qatari Coordination Council (SQCC), meeting for the first time, signed here Tuesday six landmark agreements covering borders, political coordination and media, cultural and commercial cooperation. Also concluded was an agreement to establish a joint business council between the Saudi and Qatari chambers of commerce and industry. Interior Minister Prince Naif Bin Abdul Aziz and Qatari Heir Apparent Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani co-chaired the meeting. “We've implemented the directives of the two countries' leaders in the best way possible covering all concerns,” Prince Naif said at a press conference afterwards with Sheikh Tamim. SQCC was formed in the wake of a meeting last Ramadan between King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, and Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, Emir of Qatar, and subsequently a visit to Doha shortly afterwards by Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz. These meetings have had a great impact in ushering in a new era of bilateral relations between the two countries, said Prince Naif who attested with Sheikh Hamad Bin Jasim Bin Jabr Al-Thani, Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs the accord on exchanging approval documents on the joint record regarding land and marine borders between the two countries, which was signed in Jeddah in July, and the two maps concomitant with them. Prince Naif said that SQCC would serve as “the firm and strong bricks” further strengthening relations between the two countries, which are “the closest in the region.” He said the leaders of the two countries were keen on forging a joint approach to confronting “the great political, security, financial and economic challenges facing our region.” The mechanisms and means of dealing with the current global challenges need to be reconsidered worldwide, he added. Prince Naif expressed confidence that “our two countries would redouble efforts to put such an approach into effect and invest our common capabilities in a manner that guarantees the interests of the two countries as well those of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), and Arab and Islamic nations. SQCC will clarify on Wednesday the details of the accords signed. Saudi-Qatari security cooperation already exists.
