Kuwait PM calls for permanent Arab seat on UN Security Council

The Prime Minister of Kuwait, Sheikh Jaber Al Sabah, has called for reforms to the UN Security Council that would assign a permanent Arab seat.

The premier, whose country currently has a non-permanent seat on the Security Council, said that doing so would better represent the realities of the global political landscape.

Speaking in New York on Wednesday, he addressed the Rohingya crisis, calling for countries to do all they can to deter humanitarian disaster and to grant the displaced people citizenship.

Furthermore, Sheikh Jaber condemned the spread of terrorism in the Arab world and urged all local actors to overcome their differences to tackle regional challenges.

"It is regrettable that the Middle East region has the lion’s share of challenges, for multiple reasons and through multiple means, therefore we need concerted international efforts,” he said.

On Palestine, he said the Arab cause had been “saturated” with UN resolutions that have failed to enact change due to Israel’s occupation.

He condemned Israel’s violations in Jerusalem and categorically rejected all its illegal policies aimed at claiming the Palestinian capital as its own.

As for Iraq, he commended the government's action against ISIS and said peace and stability must be restored to begin efforts to rebuild and allow Iraqis to return home. Kuwait hosted the Iraq Reconstruction Summit earlier this year, which saw allies pledge more than $30 billion to its restoration.

Turning to Syria, he said Kuwait has made efforts towards remedying the humanitarian crisis in the country, hosting three international donor conferences.

Sheikh Jaber also restated Kuwait’s full commitment to Yemen’s unity, and said that a solution must be based on the outcomes of national dialogue.

From:  The National