An agreement has been reached to release two of the four Kuwaiti Guantanamo detainees, revealed the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Dr Mohammad AlـSabah. He said the other two will be also released in due course, which will bring this prolonged issue to an end. According to the minister, the agreement was hammered out following marathon discussions involving His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser AlـMohammad AlـSabah and the US envoy Daniel Fred, who is in charge of closing the detention facility. Following the discussions, the minister stated that Kuwait has been eager to see justice done as far as this issue is concerned. "They either have to be released or put on trial," the minister unequivocally said, adding that their continued detention without trial is unacceptable.
In another development, His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser AlـMohammed AlـSabah met and discussed late Monday with UN Secretary General Ban Kiـmoon the relationship between Kuwait and Iraq and the UN''s role in maintaining the demarcation of the borders between the two countries. Following the meeting, which was attended by the official accompanying delegation, Kuwait''s Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Sheikh Dr. Mohammed AlـSabah told KUNA and Kuwait Television that several issues were discussed, among them the various roles of the UN in the region in general.
He shed light on those roles, such as the "security role in preserving security and stability through the implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions and especially issues related to peace in the Middle East." He added that among the issues discussed were the "relations between Iraq and Kuwait and the necessity of implementing the resolutions especially Resolutions 833 and 773." He stated: "We showed that matters are good and what is required is the completion of the implementation of the resolutions." He also stressed that Ban Kiـmoon "promised to maintain the demarcation of the borders between Kuwait and Iraq before the end of this year" and that he will "work on completing the UN resolution which was welcomed and appreciated. We also discussed the UN''s role in the humanitarian help, in helping the poor and fighting poverty."
Sheikh Dr. Mohammed affirmed that His Highness Sheikh Nasser "explained Kuwait''s active role in international aid, where Kuwait has always been generous, even more than the developed countries, in this area and was praised by the secretary general, which is why a regional headquarters of the UN was chosen to be in Kuwait," known as the United Nations House, which was donated by the Kuwaiti government.
He added that the meeting also focused on the funds established by Kuwait to help the underdeveloped countries and fight poverty and hunger in Africa "where it was an opportunity to highlight the major developmental role which Kuwait plays." As for peace in the Middle East, the Kuwaiti foreign minister said that "we shed light on the Arab peace initiative which Kuwait is adherent to and that the burden now is on the Israeli government" to take its responsibility towards those UN resolutions and the "looting of land that it is committing under different justifications" which is considered to be "a crime that is being committed on a daily basis." Meanwhile, the office of the UN secretary general said that during the meeting, Ban Kiـmoon introduced his Special Representative in Iraq, Adi Melkert.
The secretaryـgeneral also noted that he had "submitted his report to the Security Council on outstanding Chapter VII mandates

Alwatan Daily