Jordan Times
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Monarch reviews regional developments with Qatari premier
AMMAN (Petra) - His Majesty King Abdullah on
Monday met with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad Ben
Jassem Al Thani and discussed bilateral relations and regional developments.
During the meeting, King Abdullah and the Qatari premier discussed several
regional issues, particularly efforts aimed at reviving the peace process.
On bilateral relations, the Monarch told the Qatari premier that he instructed
the government to work with its Qatari counterpart to come up with means of
boosting Jordanian-Qatari cooperation.
King Abdullah also highlighted the importance of coordinating efforts seeking to
activate joint Arab action, particularly since the Arab nation currently faces
major challenges requiring such coordination.
Sheikh Hamad, who conveyed the greetings of Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad Ben
Khalifah to the King, said his country is keen to reinforce and develop its
relations with the Kingdom in all fields.
The Qatari premier arrived in Jordan late Sunday to take part in the “Arab Women
and Future Prospects” conference, which opened yesterday with broad
participation of local and Arab experts on women-related issues.
The two-day event, organised by the Arab Thought Forum (ATF), was inaugurated by
HRH Prince Hassan, president of the ATF, at the Princess Sumaya University for
Technology.
Sheikh Hamad, HRH Princess Sumaya, president of the Royal Scientific Society,
and several senior officials and ambassadors attended the conference.
In his opening address, Prince Hassan highlighted the importance of creating a
balance between the concepts of hope, faith, morals, science and labour, and
fairly promoting them among men and women to positively impact the Arab world
development process.
Meanwhile, Sheikh Hamad said women-related issues are no longer categorised as
secondary but form a cornerstone in the comprehensive development process of
societies.
He said Qatar believes that peace and political security cannot be achieved
without sustainable democratic reforms that take into consideration responsible
public participation and society’s cultural particularities.
The Qatari premier noted that his country has drawn up programmes and projects
to upgrade the status of Qatari women and eliminate all kinds of discrimination
against them.
Participants at the conference will discuss how Arab women’s situations are
influenced by international changes, women-related legislation and means to
improve Arab women’s conditions, according to ATF Secretary General Hassan Nafa.