Gulf | Qatar
End unilateral intervention policy, US told
The fourth US-Islamic conference called yesterday on the United States to stop unilateral intervention and double standards in dealing with the Middle East if it seeks reconciliation with the Islamic world.
- By Barbara Bibbo', Correspondent
- Published: 00:00 February 20, 2007
Doha: The fourth US-Islamic conference called yesterday on the United States to stop unilateral intervention and double standards in dealing with the Middle East if it seeks reconciliation with the Islamic world.
Some participants in the Fourth US-Islamic World conference that concluded yesterday also called on the Muslim world to address internal issues such as unemployment, underdevelopment and dictatorship that represent fertile soil for the growth of violence and fanaticism.
Summing up the conference's outcome, Carlos Pascual, Vice-president and director of foreign policy studies at the Brookings Institution, said the US-Islamic world relations needed both sides to work together to build up political understanding and mutual respect through dialogue and business, educational and cultural partnerships. Above all, he said the forum agreed upon defusing the existing conflicts in the region, which are a motive of growing divide between the US and Islamic world.
Pascal said a leading theme emerging throughout the conference was the Middle Eastern conflict, whose solution was seen as paramount to bridge the gap between the US and the Islamic world.
Radical changes
Pascal said that in this regard the conference also suggested regional engagement in support of national reconciliation in Iraq, peaceful nuclear negotiation with Iran, support for reconciliation and reconstruction in Lebanon, and the creation of viable livelihoods and security in Afghanistan. The conference also urged the US to close Guantanamo and renounce torture.
Related Links
Addressing the gathering, Al Sadiq Abdul Rahman Al Mahdi, the former prime minister of Sudan, said no dialogue would be possible between the US and the Islamic world unless the US changes radically its policies in the region and the Muslim world engages in a serous reform process.
David Ignatius columnist of the Washington Post, called on the United States to listen to the demands of the Islamic world that rejects the "US policies, arrogance and unilateralism". Ignatius urged the US Government to find a just solution for Palestine by abandoning double standards and addressing the conflict in Iraq by involving neighbouring countries and adopting a multilateral approach as a way to deal with all foreign issues.
Rami Khouri, political analyst and editor at large of The Daily Star in Lebanon, suggested the enforcement of multinational, legitimate instruments to bring to justice criminals across the world, as a means to substitute unilateral military interventions and strikes with the international rule of law.
News Editor's choice
-
Ukraine leaders fight over Russian language
Violence erupts in Ukraine parliament over a bill to allow use of Russian language in courts, hospitals
-
Impounded cars may be sold off
Abu Dhabi Municipality warns motorists who have abandoned cars in the emirate
-
Parents to control how children use their phones
Move will help protect youngsters from pornography and bullying
