The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia underscored the importance of pushing the GCC forward from the current phase of cooperation among its member states to the phase of union, a move remains imperative amid the current security, political and economic changes, Saudi Arabia told participants of Manama Dialogue Forum today. Addressing the gathering in the Bahraini capital of Manama, Dr. Nizar bin Obaid Madani, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, said the increasing importance of the GCC member states for the stability and security of the entire region forces us to unite rather than any other kind of grouping. He cited the strategic, political and economic leverage of the GCC member countries, making them target of many threats and dangers. To protect their political and economic achievements which they built over decades, the GCC members will have to come together to unity to avert any risk of disunity, Madani added. He said the current situation requires that the GCC countries should re-consider their identity that should be based on identical views that put forward the joint fate and collective interests of the group rather than their unshared interests. Such effort to avert the dangers engulfing the GCC countries could not be achieved without moving from the current phase of cooperation to the phase of unity, Dr. Madani said, reminding that unity was the final goal projected by the cartel's founders. --More 22:58 LOCAL TIME 19:58 GMT تغريد
