The Council of Ministers has renewed its call for the United Nations Security Council to “shoulder its moral responsibility and exercise its legal role” to stop the bloodshed in Syria and allow humanitarian and medical aid to two badly-affected cities in that country. The Kingdom has repeatedly called for UN intervention, but an Arab League-backed plan to stop the Syrian conflict was vetoed by Russia and China at the Security Council. Chairing the weekly Cabinet session, King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, reviewed regional and international developments. In a statement to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) following the meeting, Dr. Abdul Aziz Khoja, Minister of Culture and Information, said the Cabinet underscored the recommendations of the 122nd session of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Ministerial Council held in Riyadh on Sunday, which praised the role of the GCC in improving the lives of people living in the region. Khoja said the ministers reviewed the King's proposal for the GCC to shift from cooperation to a single unified entity. Cabinet also discussed economic and cultural activities taking place in the Kingdom including the Jeddah Economic Forum and Riyadh International Book Fair which starts on Tuesday under the patronage of King Abdullah. The book fair will host more than 544 publishers from 25 countries. Cabinet also touched on the 7th Saudi/Lebanese Economic Forum in Beirut and the 6th meeting of the permanent joint Saudi-Sudanese Committee which was held to look at utilizing the natural resources found on the bed of the Red Sea. The meeting authorized Prince Sultan Bin Salman, Chairman of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA), to discuss a draft memorandum of understanding with the Kenyan Ministry of Tourism. Cabinet also approved a recommendation by the Minister of Finance to sign an agreement with the Republic of Ireland to avoid dual taxation and prevent tax evasion on income as per the text signed in Riyadh in February 2011. Cabinet approved the final account of the Saudi Development Fund for the fiscal year 2009/2010 and gave the go-ahead for a number of new appointments on Grade 14 and 15.
