A summit here Wednesday by the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Syria and Kuwait saw the emergence of a new “Arab Quartet” that pledged the beginning of “a unified approach in Arab politics.” King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, hosted the summit with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad and Kuwaiti Emir Shiekh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jabir Al-Sabah “to implement a collective will” of the four leaders “to clear the air between Arab countries and achieve reconciliation” in furtherance of King Abdullah's call made at the Jan. 20 Arab Summit in Kuwait for overcoming past differences in the interests of Arabs. It was Bashar's first visit to Riyadh in four years. statement reported by SPA said “the leaders consider their meeting the beginning of a new phase of relationships in which the four countries will serve Arab causes through cooperation and serious, continuous work for the welfare of Arab countries, and through a unified approach in Arab politics on essential causes, topped by the Palestinian issue.” Prince Saud Al-Faisal, Minister of Foreign Affairs, said after the meeting that Arab leaders will be informed on what went on in the summit. “The effort has been exerted and will continue seeking to clear the air between Arab countries,” Prince Saud said. The mini-summit was called by King Abdullah to further the cause of Arab reconciliation ahead of an Arab summit set for March 29 and 30 in Doha, Qatar. Palestinians and other Arabs hailed the outcome of the mini-summit. “This Arab Quartet summit not only gives a push to resolving Arab differences but also to enhancing the ongoing dialogue between Palestinians,” said Nabil Shaath, special envoy to Egypt of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. “All Arabs must now end their differences in order to face the common enemy - the new Likud-led gobvernment of Benjamin Netanyahu,” Shaat told Saudi Gazette by telephone. Ismail Haniyeh, who heads Hamas-ruled Gaza, welcomed the development as a “very good step toward returning to Arab unity.” “We are fed up of the differences,” Haniyeh told Saudi Gazette by telephone. “We have confidence in King Abdullah – this Quartet summit will help make the Doha summit a success.” Referring to Hamas, Muhammad Subeih, assistant secretary-general of the Arab League, said the mini-summit would greatly help the Palestinians, “since having Syria on the path of reconciliation would help convince some factions to return to participation in the Palestinian unity government.” “We are expecting a breakthrough in Arab relations, since some countries have decided to put their past differences aside,” Subeih said. Dr. Mustafa Al-Fakeih, chairman of Foreign Relations in Egypt's parliament noted that “Saudi Arabia has always tried to intoduce the stability element and minimize the tension element among Arabs by introducing the culture of dialogue and reconciliation.”
