GCC Foreign Ministers in Jeddah on Monday held a joint meeting with Canadian Foreign Minister Stephane Dion, under the chairmanship of Dr. Nizar Obaid Madani, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the current head of the GCC Council of Foreign Ministers. Bahrain's Foreign Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, United Arab Emirates' Minister of State for the Foreign Affairs Dr Anwar bin Mohammed Gargash, GCC Secretary General Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani and official delegations representing other GCC countries and Canada participated in the meeting. At the outset of the meeting, Dr. Madani delivered a speech in which he explained that this dialogue aims at achieving the common goals and strengthen the special relationship between GCC and Canada to achieve regional peace and security, pointing out that the positions of the two sides are parallel with respect to achieving a lasting and just peace. Afterwards, the Canadian Foreign Minister delivered a speech in which he stressed the economic importance of the GCC countries for Canada, and the need for more cooperation between the two sides to diversify the sources of economy, as well as cooperation to face regional challenges, the importance of concerted efforts in Syria and work to deliver humanitarian aid to the Syrian people. Then, Dr Al-Zayani delivered a speech in which he described the strategic dialogue between the GCC countries and Canada as a qualitative leap for the relations between the two sides to serve the common objectives and interests in all areas. Dr Al-Zayani stated that the GCC Secretariat General and the Government of Canada agreed on a Memorandum of Understanding to determine mechanisms of the strategic dialogue and areas of cooperation, as well as consultation and exchange of views on issues of common interest and regional and international issues. He added that the two sides also agreed on a joint work plan between the GCC and the Canada for the years (2016-2020), which includes political and security cooperation, as well as the cooperation in the field of trade and investment, energy, education and health. During the meeting, the memorandum of understanding between the GCC General Secretariat and Canada was signed by the Canadian Foreign Minister Stephane Dion and GCC Secretary General Dr. Al Zayani. The meeting also discussed the GCC-Canadian relations and ways of enhancing them in various fields, latest developments of the political and security situation in the region and international efforts to combat terrorism, in addition to the regional and international issues of common interest. At the end of the meeting, a joint statement was issued.
