MINISTER ATTENDS FIRST ASEAN-GCC MEETING IN BAHRAIN

KUALA LUMPUR, June 29 (Bernama) -- Foreign Minister Anifah Aman is
leading a Malaysian delegation to the first full-fledged Asean-Gulf Cooperation
Council (GCC) Ministerial Meeting in Manama, Bahrain, which begins Monday.

The two-day meeting will discuss and review the existing cooperation as well
as exchange views on international and regional developments, a Malaysian
Foreign Affairs (Wisma Putra) statement here says.

It will also serve as a good opportunity to explore ways to enhance
cooperation between the two regions, it says, adding that Asean and the GCC have
had formal contacts since 1990.

During the meeting, Anifah and his counterparts will also witness the
signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the secretaries of Asean and
the GCC, which will form the basic framework to work together in exploring areas
for future cooperation of common interest.

It says the meeting also reflects the interest of both sides to further
enhance relations and is significant in augmenting existing relations as
well as charting the future direction of Asean-GCC cooperation.


Anifah will be accompanied by his wife, Rubiah Abdul Samad, and
officials from Wisma Putra.

The GCC was established on May 25, 1981 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and
comprises six Gulf countries, namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia
and the United Arab Emirates.

-- BERNAMA