RIYADH — The Council of Ministers on Tuesday emphasized the unified position taken by the Security and Defense Conference of the Chiefs of Staff of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states and a number of friendly countries against the attacks on the Kingdom and targeting its economy and energy infrastructure. The weekly session of the Cabinet, chaired by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman at Al-Yamamah Palace here, also underscored condemnation of these attacks by the conference, describing them as a direct challenge to the world economy as well as to the international community. In a statement to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) following the session, Minister of Media Turki Al-Shabanah noted that the Riyadh conference vowed its full support for the Kingdom's efforts to deal with these criminal acts, and uphold its rights with its partners to defend itself and deter other attacks in accordance with the international law. The countries that participated in the conference also included the United States of America, France, Germany, Egypt, Jordan, Pakistan, Britain, South Korea, the Netherlands, Italy, New Zealand and Greece. At the outset of the session, the King briefed the Cabinet on his recent meetings with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas. Al-Shabanah said the Monarch affirmed the Kingdom's standing with Palestine and the rights of its people to establish an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital. The Cabinet also hailed the agreement, based on the talks of the King and Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman with the Palestinian president, and upon the desire of Abbas, to establish a Joint Economic Committee and the Saudi-Palestinian Business Council. It also pointed out that this is an extension of the support and attention by the Kingdom's leadership to the Palestinian cause, politically and financially, and contribute to all that benefit peoples of the two countries. Al-Shabanah said the Cabinet also noted the condemnation of the sabotage attack on oil plants in Abqaiq and Khurais by the meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Interior Ministers held in Muscat, and their commending of the measures taken by all competent and responsible authorities in the Kingdom to deal with this blatant aggression. The Muscat meeting affirmed their countries' solidarity with the Kingdom in all measures taken to protect its security and stability, defend its interests, and emphasizing joint security action to secure international freedom of navigation in the Arabian Gulf. The Cabinet also underlined the Kingdom's speech at the United Nations in New York, in which it highlighted the significance of a comprehensive international agreement to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, noting breaches to its nuclear undertakings, and exploitation of the economic returns of the nuclear agreement to finance hostile and terrorist activities in the region. The Cabinet condemned the continued refusal of Israel to join the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty (NPT), and the need to subject all its nuclear facilities to the system of comprehensive safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The Kingdom also condemned the use of chemical weapons in Syria, and called for holding accountable for committing these criminal acts, which violate all international laws and ethical and humanitarian principles. The Cabinet also reiterated the Kingdom's condemnation of the suicide attack, in the east Afghan province of Lachman, which killed dozens of people, including many children, and the attack on a mosque in Nangarhar province during Friday prayers, which killed more than 60 worshipers and wounded dozens.
