New York – Information Office – 29 September

The State of Qatar said Saturday that it will not hesitate to provide any support that contributes to the achievement of the objectives of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, stressing the need for the organization to be a uniting force Muslim people and nations. The State of Qatar also called on the executive body of the Organization to abide by its mandate and tasks, and not to get involved in fabricated disputes and issues that would weaken the Organization's ability to play a key role in central issues for the Muslim world.

      This came in a statement made by HE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi at the annual coordination meeting of the OIC foreign ministers held on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly.

    The minister of state said that the OIC General Secretariat should work on developing a vision of clear operational mechanisms to resolve the escalating crises, the schemes of attrition, marginalization, fragmentation, division and regional and sectarian disputes that afflict many Muslim countries. He added that the lack of these mechanisms propelled many countries to resort to international organizations and international actors in order to find solutions involving high cost and high risk.

      His Excellency stressed on the importance of strengthening the bonds of cooperation and brotherhood between the members of the Organization and to enhance its role. He then wondered if it was acceptable to put obstacles to prevent the participation of delegations of the State of Qatar in meetings held at the headquarters of the organization.

     "His Excellency added that the tasks entrusted to the OIC to address the dangers facing the Islamic world, which make cooperation between our countries the only way to achieve the goals for which the Organization was established, require a serious look into practical ways to enhance the role of the Organization in addressing these challenges.

HE the Minister of State called upon the OIC member states to recall the reasons and justifications that led to the establishment of the Organization nearly five decades ago. The OIC was established to confront the weakness of the Islamic world. It was hoped that the Organization would become a strong and successful international conglomerate that helps its member countries confront existing and potential threats, expressing regret that the Organization of Islamic Cooperation has not been able to do so.

The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs stressed the need for a serious organization representing all Islamic countries and contributing to the defense of Islamic world issues, not a protocol organization whose role is limited to holding meetings and giving statements, stressing the need for an organization that unites rather than divides, one that is not a burden on Islamic countries and a source of differences.

His Excellency added that the magnitude of the risks facing Islamic countries requires the organization to rise to the level of those risks, saying that this necessitates reviving the efforts to reform the organization and improve its capabilities so that it can carry out its tasks to serve the Islamic peoples and the just causes of the Muslim world.

HE Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi said that Islam and its law calls for not harming the brotherly relations that bind the Muslim peoples, and to reflect on the results of actions and policies that harm Muslims based on various claims and crises.

He called on those who conduct the work of the Organization to refrain from any position that conflicts with its objectives, or that does not serve the unity of the ranks of the Islamic countries, deepen the division between brothers, and harms the credibility of the organization that was established in order to bring Muslims closer rather than deepen differences and crises.

He noted that the Palestinian cause continues to be the most important for the organization, adding that Al Quds is also central to that cause. He noted that threats to holy sites in Al Quds give Muslims a special responsibility to protect them. He stressed that they must use all means provided by international law to stop such violations.

He reiterated Qatar's support for all efforts to create an environment conducive to the peace process, the need for Israel to withdraw from all Palestinian and Arab territories of pre-1967 borders, to support a two-state solution, living in peace and security side by side based on the 1967 borders with East Al Quds as the capital of Palestine.

With regards to the Syrian crisis, HE the Minister of State said that the time has come to end the suffering of the brotherly Syrian people by supporting the international efforts to reach a political solution in accordance with the Geneva Declaration 1 and to implement the Security Council resolutions related to the situation in Syria and preserve its unity, independence and sovereignty.

The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi, said that the State of Qatar has committed itself to stand with the Islamic countries and to do what it can to help them and restore the cohesion among its people. It will also continue this approach in line with its responsibilities and commitment to the brothers in the Islamic world, and to contribute to the achievement of the objectives for which the Organization of Islamic Cooperation was established.

     In this context, the State of Qatar, in its capacity as Chairman of the Contact Group on Somalia, is coordinating the convening of the next meeting of the Group in Mogadishu in support of brotherly Somalia and the implementation of the Organization's resolutions.