DUBAI: Algeria will host the Arab League’s 31st summit on Tuesday and Wednesday, with food security and the Palestinian issue expected to top the agenda.
The Arab League’s 22 members last met in 2019, before the coronavirus epidemic. With the establishing of diplomatic links between Israel and four additional Arab League nations, as well as the consequences from the Ukraine war, new problems have significantly transformed the region’s agenda in the years thereafter.
All of these concerns are anticipated to be front and center during Algeria’s first hosting of the summit.
The food and energy crises exacerbated by the conflict in eastern Europe are likely to dominate the summit’s agenda.
The situation has been terrible for Egypt, Lebanon, and Tunisia, among other Arab nations, who are battling to import enough food and petroleum to feed their populations.
The worst drought in recent decades has ravaged sections of Somalia in the last month, driving some places to the verge of starvation.
To address the serious food security concerns, Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit called for a “integrated Arab vision” on Friday.
The Palestinian problem is set to dominate the summit agenda as well.
Algerian Prime Minister Aymen Benabderrahmane had stated that the Arab gathering will be an opportunity to “reaffirm solidarity for the Palestinian struggle, as a basic Arab cause.”
Algeria took up the leadership of the League of Arab States Council from Tunisia.
Algiers’ main thoroughfares have been adorned with Arab flags and large billboards welcoming “fellow Arabs.”
Source: Arab News