Manama, June 27 (BNA): A follow-up to the Negev Summit, which was held in Sde Boker, Israel, in March of this year, in which it was decided to form a framework for regional cooperation (the Negev Forum), and the governments of Bahrain and Egypt. Israel, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States, represented by senior officials from their respective ministries of foreign affairs, held the inaugural meeting of the Steering Committee of the Negev Forum in Manama, Bahrain on June 27, 2022. The main objective of the committee is to continue coordinating our collective efforts and promoting a common vision for the region. In this context, we defined a framework document for the Negev Forum, outlined the objectives of the Forum, the working methods of its four-part structure: the Ministerial for Foreign Ministers, the Presidency, the Steering Committee, and the Working Groups. .
This meeting demonstrates the strength of our relations, our shared commitment to cooperation, and the significant opportunities that improved relations between Israel and its neighbors have unlocked, showing what can be achieved by working together to overcome common challenges. The participants also emphasized that these relations can be harnessed to create momentum in the Israeli-Palestinian relations, towards a negotiated solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and as part of efforts to achieve a just, lasting and comprehensive peace.
The Steering Committee discussed the appointment of chairmen for each of the six working groups launched by the Ministers at the Negev Summit. Working groups are scheduled to meet regularly throughout the year to advance initiatives that encourage regional integration, cooperation and development for the benefit of the people of the region and across a variety of areas, including initiatives that strengthen the Palestinian economy and improve the quality of life for Palestinians. The Chairs of the Working Group are expected to provide regular progress reports to the Steering Committee. Working group chairs may, by consensus of the members, invite participants who are not members to participate in specific initiatives where their participation is of direct benefit to the stated objective of the initiative.
The working groups are as follows:
• clean energy
• Education and coexistence
• Food and water security
• health
• Regional Security
• tourism
The Ministerial Meeting of Foreign Ministers, which is expected to meet annually, will be the forum’s main governing body. Israel will continue to serve as chair of the Negev Forum until the next ministerial meeting.
The Steering Committee emphasized that deepening cooperation and improving understanding between our countries is essential to the success of the wider region.
We look forward to the next ministerial meeting of the Negev Forum later this year, to be preceded by another Steering Committee meeting to be held in Israel.
FKN