Friendship Forum stresses commitment to international law

Athens, Feb.11 (BNA): The “Friendship Forum”, held under the chairmanship of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Greece, Nikos Dendias, concluded its activities in the Greek capital today, with the participation of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani. Also participating were Saudi Foreign Minister, His Highness Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah Al Saud, Egyptian Foreign Minister, Sameh Shoukry, UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation, Reem Al-Hashemi, and French Foreign Minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, Cypriot Foreign Minister, Nikos Christodoulides, and the official delegations of the participating countries. The forum issued a statement in which the participating ministers affirmed their countries' joint commitment to international law, including the United Nations Charter, United Nations Security Council Resolutions and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. They also stressed strong commitment to the basic principles such as respect for sovereignty, sovereign rights, independence, territorial integrity of states, peaceful resolution of disputes, rejection of threats or use of force, non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries and freedom of navigation. The statement also emphasized the awareness of the participating countries, at this critical juncture, dominated by the Corona pandemic, of the need to show solidarity and coordinate efforts in order to reduce the repercussions of this health crisis on the economies of countries. It expressed the willingness of the participating countries to enhance results-oriented exchanges, as well as joint actions and initiatives in areas such as energy, innovation, digital economy, civil protection and people-to-people communication. It expressed desire to explore the possibilities of increasing cooperation in the fields of science, agriculture, food security, education, academic training, interfaith dialogue and culture and sports. It emphasized that views were exchanged on major international and regional issues, including developments in the Middle East Peace Process, Cyprus, Syria, Libya, Yemen and the Eastern Mediterranean issue. It indicated that it was agreed to refer to this forum henceforth as the “Philia Forum - Building Friendship, Peace and Prosperity from the Mediterranean to the Gulf", and would be effective, flexible and open to other countries in the region and beyond that share the above values and principles.