Heads Of States Of Arabian Peninsula To Determine Their Attitude To New Kabul Administration

The summit of member countries of the Council of Cooperation of Persian Gulf Arab States to be held on December 30-31 will discuss questions pertaining to the recognition of the interim Kabul government and participation in international forces for preserving peace in Afghanistan. The Saudi newspaper al-Sharq al-Awsat, referring to informed sources in Riyadh, writes that the heads of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Bahrain will also discuss, during their meeting, measures to enhance collaboration in the struggle against terrorism. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates recognized the Taliban government in 1997 (relations with them were severed on October 25 and 22, 2001 respectively), while the other members of the Council maintained their relations with the Burhanuddin Rabbani government, the paper points out.