The Ministerial Council of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) held today its 147th session in the Riyadh-based Secretariat General under the chairmanship of Bahraini Foreign Minister Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, who is also President of the current session of the GCC Ministerial Council, and with the participation of Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Khalifa Shaheen Almarar, UAE Minister of State; Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood AlBusaidi, Omani Foreign Minister; Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Qatari Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs; Sheikh Dr. Ahmed Nasser Al-Mohammed Al-Sabah, Kuwaiti Foreign Minister and Minister of State for Prime Ministry Affairs, and Dr. Nayef Falah Mubarak Al-Hajraf, GCC Secretary General. The Ministerial Council condemned the attack that targeted one of the petroleum storage facilities at Ras Tanura port with a drone coming from the sea as well as the targeting of Saudi Aramco's facilities in Dhahran with a ballistic missile on March 7, 2021. The Council also denounced the continuous attacks of terrorist Houthi militias against the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, affirming the GCC's stand by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in taking all necessary and deterrent measures against these provocative acts that target civilians, civilian objects, airports, seaports, vital oil facilities and global energy resources. The Council also stressed that these acts violate all international laws and norms and threaten regional security and stability, lauding the efficiency and preparedness of the Royal Saudi Air Defense Forces. The Council calls upon the international community to bear its responsibility toward these terrorist sabotage acts and the parties supporting them. The Ministerial Council also reiterated the content of the Final Communiqué, Al-Ula Statement and Al-Ula Declaration issued by the 41st Session of the GCC Supreme Council (The Summit of Sultan Qaboos and Sheikh Sabah), which was held in Al-Ula Governorate in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on January 5, 2021. The Council also asserted that the GCC security is indivisible based on the statute of the GCC and the Joint Defense Agreement, under which all GCC countries unite against any threat to any country of the GCC. The Ministerial Council praised the GCC achievements over the past four decades, underscoring the strength and cohesion of the GCC and its steadfastness and profoundness of its accomplishments. The Council looks forward to enter the fifth decade with hopes to realize welfare, progress and sustainable development to the GCC peoples as well as more achievements for the GCC countries in order to consolidate security and stability. The Ministerial Council also reviewed the latest developments pertaining to the GCC joint action in addition to the political issues at the regional and international arenas.
