Speech by the delegation of Kuwait

Bismillahi Rahmani Rahim

Praise be to Allah who says in the Holy Quran: “Verily, this Ummah of yours is a single Ummah and I am your Lord and Cherisher: therefore serve me (and no other).”

Prayer and Peace be upon the Prophet Muhammad, his Family and Companions. .

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz, King of Saudi Arabia and Chairman of the Extraordinary Islamic Summit Conference,

Your Excellency Abdullah Badawi, Prime Minister of Malaysia and Chairman of the Tenth Islamic Summit Conference,

Your Majesties, Highnesses and Excellencies,

Assalamu Alaykum wa rahmatulahi wa barakatuhu,

I have the pleasure to convey to you the greetings of His Royal Highness Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmad Al-Sabah, Amir of the State of Kuwait - may Allah preserve him - who has bestowed on me the honour of representing him at this Extraordinary Session of the Islamic Summit Conference, convened by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques to examine the issues of concern to our Muslim Ummah, under the kind auspices of the King, Government, and people of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as they host this conference at this sacred location of Makkah Al-Mukarramah, the land of divine revelation, the birthplace of the Seal of all Messengers and the Qibla of all Muslims, in these blessed months, surrounding us with their customary generous hospitality and warm welcome. We pray to Almighty Allah that the blessing of His Holy Mosque may encompass us all.

I am fully confident that the wisdom of my brother the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz, will guide the work of the conference in such a way as to achieve the objectives to which we all aspire.

I would also like to express my deep appreciation to the Chairman of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, His Excellency Abdullah Badawi, Prime Minister of Malaysia, for his sincere efforts, and to the Secretary-General of the Organization, Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, for his positive efforts to develop the work of the Organization and its organs, enhance their performance and meet the expectations for which they have been established.

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques,

The observer of the current situation of our Muslim Ummah is undoubtedly aware of the magnitude of the issues and the extent of the challenges facing our States and peoples at this critical moment of our history. I am confident that the generous invitation to hold this Extraordinary Summit on this sacred spot will definitely give us an additional motive to meet such challenges as terrorism, armed conflicts, and the economic dysfunction, as well as the scientific, technical and cultural challenges facing most of our countries. All these challenges require greater solidarity and assiduous efforts.

Our Conference has before it an agenda replete with various issues of concern to our Muslim world, including in particular the Ten-Year Programme of Action to Meet the Challenges of the 21st Century – prepared by an elite group of officials, scholars and intellectuals of our Muslim Ummah - which merits the attention and interest of our conference. We look forward to seeing this document as one of the fruits of our conference.

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques,

Terrorism has become the major concern of the international community. Events have proved that we – as Islamic States - are not immune to terrorism, which has begun to plague many of our States. The daily scenes of killing and destruction in Iraq and the recent events that have taken place in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Jordan and many other Muslim States, prove that we are all concerned with the fight against this phenomenon that is not confined to any nation, religion or civilization.

Therefore, the emergence of misguided groups that have deviated from the straight path to fanaticism, violence and extremism, attributing their acts to Islam, in no way justifies associating this phenomenon with the Islamic faith, which advocates moderation, tolerance, respect for other religions and calls for peace and mutual understanding.

We are all expected, as Muslim States, to focus on projecting the true image and tolerant principles of Islam, and counter - through an organized, well-studied and continuous programme of action – this recent phenomenon of associating terrorist acts with Islam and its teachings. This association runs counter to the principles of our Ummah and our tolerant religion, which are inherent in the identity which Almighty Allah has described in His Holy Book: “Thus, have We made of you an Ummah justly balanced, that ye might be witness over the nations, and that the Messenger a witness over yourselves”.

Indeed, this is true Islam, the religion of moderation and avoidance of excess, founded on the values of equality, justice, peace and brotherhood.

In this connection, the State of Kuwait welcomes the outcome of the International Counter-Terrorism Conference held in Riyadh, and the call of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz, for the establishment - within the United Nations - of an international centre for combating terrorism in order to intensify and concert the international endeavors that are currently being made at various levels with a view to eradicating this phenomenon and its sponsors.

One of the most important factors conducive to combating terrorism is the elimination of the causes of tension, which terrorist groups are attempting to exploit in the region. Chief among these is the Middle East Conflict and the deteriorating conditions in the Palestinian territories due to the continuing Israeli occupation with its inhuman practices in flagrant defiance of UN resolutions.

The State of Kuwait, while stressing its continued support for the Palestinian people in their struggle to fully realize their legitimate rights, including the establishment of their independent State with Al Quds as its capital. We call upon the Israeli government to pursue the practical steps it has taken by withdrawing from the Gaza Strip and the Northern regions of the West Bank as well as fulfil the obligations stipulated by the resolutions of international legitimacy.

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques,

Our region has witnessed recently a number of developments, the most outstanding of which being the progress of the political process in Iraq, wherein the brotherly Iraqi people have proved their clear determination to carry out the agreed political programme and their readiness to defy the difficult security conditions and offer dear sacrifices in order to advance the construction of the new Iraq on firm foundations: democracy, respect for human rights as well for the religious, ethnic and cultural diversity of all the elements representing the socio-political fabric of the Iraqi people. Thus, the Iraqi people marked the end of an era of fear and persecution which Iraq experienced under the rule of the previous regime, valiantly defying the manifestations of violence prevailing in Iraq which sometimes take the form of terrorism and become an attempt by the parties responsible for them to find a foothold in Iraq.

And while we emphasize that the State of Kuwait will spare no effort in supporting our Iraqi brothers in every possible way, we call on all Islamic States to provide support commensurate with these sacrifices through the various mechanisms and channels adopted by the international community, including in particular the application of Security Council resolution 1546. In this connection, we welcome the adoption of the Iraqi constitution leading to free and fair elections and the setting up of a constitutional government by the end of the year. We also welcome the results achieved by our Iraqi brothers in the preparatory meeting held recently in Cairo and in which a wide spectrum of the Iraqi society was represented.

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques,

The Islamic Ummah, despite the vastness of its geographical expanse, its abundant economic resources, its cultural and civilizational diversity, does not yet play the role required of it on the world scene owing to many factors. The most important of these is the instability deriving from differences and armed conflicts, and a lack of concentration on the issues of development, the eradication of poverty, the fight against famine and the achievement of better development levels for the Islamic peoples.

In view of this situation, the State of Kuwait calls upon all Islamic states to work side by side to free the Middle East from weapons of mass destruction and find ways and means to settle inter-Islamic disputes in a peaceful way. In this context, I wish to point out again the importance of backing the proposal by the State of Kuwait to set up an Islamic Court of Justice as one of the most efficient ways of settling disputes peacefully. We appeal to all parties concerned to ratify the Court's statute as a preliminary step towards its entry into force.

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques,

The issue of development constitutes in all of its dimensions a major factor of international stability. Hence, political stability and the fight against terrorism cannot be isolated from economic development. Here, I refer to the importance of dealing with all these issues in a global and inter-related manner, considering that development constitutes the first defence line in the collective security system that we all wish to construct. It is indeed the principle that we believe in and exercise with full responsibility in the State of Kuwait and which has become one of the constants in our foreign policy. Programs of economic development are being developed by the Kuwait Fund for Economic Development worldwide, of which Islamic States enjoy the largest share. Also the Fund contributes to a number of other financial and development institutions including IDB. On the other hand, the successive natural disasters that struck a number of Islamic countries recently, causing a lot of hardships and untold suffering, required us to extend assistance and support. Thus, the government and people of the State of Kuwait responded promptly and helped the afflicted by extending airlifts of humanitarian and medical assistance. In this regard, all the official and popular efforts were coordinated and the Kuwait Fund as well as the Red Crescent Association and charitable societies offered 100 million dollars to the countries hit by earthquakes and the Tsunami in South-east Asia, in addition to 100 million dollars to the victims of the earthquakes that struck the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques,

The considerable developments achieved in communication and information technology have led to the removal of commercial and economic barriers and the increase of interaction and communication among societies. This, in turn, has led to a new reality, the positive and negative aspects of which we have to deal with in such a way as to preserve the cultural heritage and rights of the Islamic Ummah.

While we are convening in this sacred site of Allah, we pray Almighty Allah to crown the proceedings of our Conference with success and ensure well-being and righteousness for our Islamic Ummah and peoples.

Wassalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatu Allahi Wa Barakatuhu.

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