The President of the Arab Parliament, Adel bin Abdulrahman Al-Asoomi, received the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, Duarte Pacheco. At the beginning of the discussions, Al-Asoomi expressed the Arab Parliament's keen interest in enhancing the role of parliamentary diplomacy in advocating for Arab issues in the largest global parliamentary forum, especially the Palestinian cause, which is the foremost issue for Arabs.
Al-Asoomi confirmed that "the Arab Parliament has been keen, within the framework of its new work strategy, to establish a strong institutional partnership with the Inter-Parliamentary Union, a partnership that was launched with the signing of a technical cooperation agreement between the two organizations last November in Madrid." This agreement includes boosting institutional cooperation in areas such as sustainable development, women's empowerment, human rights promotion, combating terrorism, and preventing extremist thought.
He mentioned that "the discussions touched on some cooperation projects between the Parliament and the Union, including the electronic application for combating terrorism, with which the Arab Parliament has partnered with the Union to Arabize the platform." The initiative of the African Coast Call, launched by the Arab Parliament in partnership with the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the Mediterranean Parliament, and the International Parliamentary Committee of the G5 Sahel countries, was also addressed.
The two sides discussed several programs and initiatives aimed at enhancing institutional partnership with the Inter-Parliamentary Union in various areas of mutual interest, in addition to activating the role of regional parliamentary diplomacy within the framework of the meetings of the Inter-Parliamentary Union's General Assembly.
For his part, the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union emphasized his strong commitment to implementing the foundations and areas of partnership with the Arab Parliament in practice, to be prepared through intensive future bilateral meetings, as well as implementing several joint programs aimed at building and enhancing the capacities of parliamentarians in many areas included in the cooperation agreement between the two organizations.
Pacheco affirmed that "the Inter-Parliamentary Union is keen to interact positively and fairly with Arab issues within the framework of the Union's meetings and its bodies, primarily the Palestinian cause," appreciating the Arab Parliament's stance "on several issues that are a global priority, including interfaith dialogue and the rejection of extremism, hate speech, and intolerance." He expressed his interest in enhancing cooperation with the Arab Parliament regarding this issue.
In turn, the Arab Parliament President highlighted "the positive positions of the Inter-Parliamentary Union under its current presidency regarding the Palestinian cause, the Yemeni crisis, and other Arab issues."
The two sides agreed that this meeting represents the first link in a series of joint meetings and gatherings aimed at strengthening the partnership between the Arab Parliament and the Inter-Parliamentary Union.
