terrorism in order to further the endeavours being made to combat this dangerous phenomenon. The International Counter-Terrorism Conference held in the city of Riyadh in February 2005 was attended by experts and specialists from more than 60 States and international and regional organizations. The "Riyadh Declaration", which was issued by the Conference, affirmed the unanimous international resolve to oppose terrorism. and extremism and adopted the proposal of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz AI Saud, for the establishment of an international counter-terrorism centre under United Nations auspices. This proposal was likewise endorsed by numerous international declarations such as those issued by the Summit of Arab States, the Summit of States Members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, the Arab-Latin American Summit and the States Members of the Non-Aligned Movement. The Kingdom has established rehabilitation centers in which persons detained on charges of terrorism and returnees from the Guantanamo detention centre receive counseling with a view to their reintegration in society and are also provided with financial assistance and vocational training so that they can find employment. In this connection, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia would be most willing to share its expertise in the field of such rehabilitation programs with any other States wishing to benefit from them. Mr. President, The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia shares the concern of the international community about proliferation of weapons of mass destruction in the Gulf region, especially nuclear weapons. With regard to the Iranian nuclear program, Saudi Arabia emphasizes the importance of reaching peaceful solutions, and supports the efforts of the 5+1 group in this direction which preserves the rights of Iran and the states of the region to the peaceful utilization of nuclear energy in accordance with the safeguards and standards of the International Nuclear Energy Agency. We call on Iran to respond positively to these efforts which will end the crisis and dispel international doubts about its nuclear program. However, the real key to a final and effective resolution of the problem of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction in the Middle Eastern region, which has long suffered from the scourge of wars in which all types of lethal weapons have been used, lies in the transformation of the Middle East, including Israel, into a zone free from all weapons of mass destruction. My country's Government is deeply disturbed by Israel's refusal to accede to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, as a result of which Israel's nuclear programmes, being outside the scope of international control, pose a grave threat to the region's security and stability and reinforce the prevailing impression that the international endeavours made in this regard lack credibility and cannot be taken seriously since they are tainted by double standards and selectivity. --More
