DOHA: The three-day US and Islamic World Forum which concluded here yesterday discussed many important and strategic issues of concern to the region.
In his closing remarks, Assistant Foreign Minister
H E Mohammed bin Abdullah Al Rumaihi hoped that the forum would promote the level of mutual understanding, tolerance and acceptance of others among the Islamic countries and the United States and achieve the goals for which it was initiated 12 years ago.
Al Rumaihi said that Prime Minister and Interior Minister
H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani had outlined a set of ideas about matters of concern to the region as well as political, economic, developmental, humanitarian and security challenges facing the Islamic world and Muslims and the need to find fair solutions to maintain security, stability and prosperity in the Muslim world and the world in a holistic manner. He said those ideas reiterated the need to establish a common understanding and distinct relations so as to continue working to deepen these relations on the basis of dialogue and understanding.
He said the US and Islamic World Forum has become an important opportunity to exchange ideas and opinions and was attended by many heads of state, prime ministers, ministers and senior intellectuals and officials of the Islamic world as well as members of the House of Representatives and Senate and decision-makers in the US.
Al Rumaihi extended his sincere thanks to those in charge of the forum in the Brookings Institution, Washington and the Brookings Doha Center, Qatari Foreign Ministry and Permanent Committee for Organizing Conferences, and all those who participated in the forum.
Tamara Cofman Wittes, Director of the Saban Centre for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution, said, “When we look at the challenges in the Middle East and the Muslim world, we will find that we are intertwined with each other and that we must acknowledge this fact”.
She pointed to the failure of a number of countries in the region in areas such as political pluralism, human development. This failure can be exploited by extremists, she added. She said that some of the policies pursued in the past created situations such as the Lebanese civil war and the Iraqi invasion, adding that these unwanted policies also led to sectarian tensions in the region and will have further consequences that ‘we have to prepare for them’.
Over the three days, the Forum discussed a number of topics such as Strategic priorities for the US and the Middle East, Pluralism in the Islamic world, Iran’s Role in the region; Ending civil wars and Advancing women’s role in the Middle East.
The forum also convened working and action groups focusing on current issues confronting the Islamic world. Group topics included: Strategic Realignment in the Middle East; Combating ISIS propaganda networks; and, Community-led initiatives to counter violent extremism.
The Peninsula
