Gulf Arabs states want to go nuclear
Pastor Dale Morgan
Gulf Arabs states want to go nuclear *
POSTED: 1627 GMT (0027 HKT), December 10, 2006
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (Reuters) -- Gulf Arab countries want to acquire
nuclear energy capability and have ordered a study on a possible joint
atomic program, a statement read on Sunday at the close of a two-day
Gulf Cooperation Council summit said.
"The countries of the region have the right to nuclear energy technology
for peaceful purposes," said Abdul-Rahman al-Attiya, secretary-general
of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
The statement comes amid concerns over Iran's nuclear ambitions and
suspicions that Israel has nuclear weapons.
The statement called on Iran to cooperate with the international
community over its nuclear energy program, which Western countries led
by the United States suspect is aimed at acquiring atomic weapons.
Tehran says the program is peaceful.
It also called on Israel to cooperate with international bodies over its
nuclear energy facilities.
Saudi officials have said a nuclear Iran could spur a regional arms
race, hinting that Saudi Arabia, a key U.S. ally, could look to acquire
the technology too.
The GCC statement said its nuclear program would be aimed at meeting
energy needs.
"The higher committee ordered a GCC-wide study to be carried out to
create a joint program in nuclear technology for peaceful purposes,
according to international standards and arrangements," he said, reading
a closing statement.
At least six Arab countries are developing domestic nuclear power
programs to diversify energy sources, the Middle East Economic Digest
reported last month.
It said Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Morocco and Algeria have shown interest in
developing nuclear power primarily for water desalination. Similar plans
by the United Arab Emirates and Tunisia were only at an early stage, it
said.
The GCC, which groups Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait and the
United Arab Emirates, has said it is worried about environmental damage
from an Iranian nuclear plant on the other side of the Gulf waterway.
But Gulf governments, led by Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil
exporter, also want to check what they view as the creeping influence of
Shi'ite power Iran in the Arab region through support for Lebanon's
Hezbollah, Shi'ite parties in Iraq and Tehran's alliance with Damascus.