– The Council for International Understanding (CIU) that includes more than 30 world statesmen Wednesday underscored religious tolerance as among the most important issues of the 21st century, recognized Saudi Arabia as one of the few moderate countries in the region and endorsed the 2002 initiative by King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, for peace in the Middle East. The concluding statement of the three-day 27th annual meeting of the CIU held at King Abdullah Economic City also welcomed the reform proposals initiated by King Abdullah and his endeavors to promote dialogue among followers of religions, as evidenced by last year's conferences in Madrid, Spain, and the United Nations in New York. The final statement stressed that religious tolerance is one of the most important issues in the 21st century and that Islam has the right to be respected worldwide like Christianity and Judaism. Wednesday's concluding session included a seminar on the Islamic-Christian dialogue, titled “Common Roots of Islam and Christianity,” and a discussion on the world's current political, economic and security status. The seminar was the CIU's contribution the world dialogue of religions. “The world today lives in an environment of economic and technical globalization and, therefore, the concept for which we should work in this century is cooperation in all aspects of thought and action,” the CIU statement said. It stressed that the Middle East will remain a hub for conflict unless real peace is achieved between Israel and its neighbors. The statement described King Abdullah's 2002 peace initiative as “comprehensive” and noted his call again in January this year for its adoption as a means to achieving peace in Palestine. However, the CIU statement said “it seems that Israel is not interested today in peace.” The CIU recommended that the international community should take into consideration that the Arab League's main interest lies in resolving the Middle East conflict, that the 2002 Arab peace initiative must be reconsidered and that the continuing siege of Gaza by Israel, which is contrary to international law, must be condemned. The statement said the international community should welcome King Abdullah's initiative on dialogue among the followers of religions and recommended that theories of clash of civilizations and cultures must be universally rejected. As for foreign policy and peace, the statement highlighted Saudi Arabia's status as one of the few moderate countries in the region. Noting that the Kingdom does not constitute an arena for conflicts since it is one of the most important Islamic countries, the CIU welcomed, “with the whole world, the current reform proposals of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah in this context.” The statement compared the current global financial crisis to the Great Depression of 1929 in the US, and attributed it to the “greed of financial institutions and a lack of effective monitoring and organizational powers at the global level.” The CIU also welcomed the change in the US presidency, and wished the Obama administration success in “seeking new ways to deal with global issues.” Later, King Abdullah received the CIU participants at his residence in Al-Janadriya village on the outskirts of Riyadh. The Monarch also held a dinner banquet in their honor. Former German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt, who is also honorary president of the CIU, attributed the great strides the Kingdom has made in the fields of economy and industry to the prudent leadership of the King Abdullah. Ingvar Carlsson, former Swedish prime minister and Assistant President of the CIU, said the Rabigh meeting tackled some important issues like the humanitarian situation in the world, economy and environment. King Abdullah thanked the guests for their visit to the Kingdom and asked them to convey to the world what they have seen here. The Monarch wished them a good stay in the Kingdom and continuous health and success.
