Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdulaziz today chaired the regular weekly meeting of the Council of Ministers. On the occasion of the anniversary of the founding of the modern Kingdom, and with reference to Saudi Arabia's political, economic and social accomplishments over the past seven decades, King Fahd attested to the fact that the country will proceed on its path for the welfare of its people that was demarcated by King Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Al-Saud. Since its unification in 1932, the Kingdom has adhered staunchly to its principles, preserving the nation's stability and security, following Islamic Shariah [Law] in word and deed, and rejecting all that contradicts the Islamic faith, such as violence, intimidation of citizens and the killing of innocents. Saudi foreign policy, he said, has been based on mutual respect, good neighborliness, non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries, enhancement of good ties and strengthening of all bases of cooperation at the Arab, Islamic and international levels in a way that serves Islam and spreads justice and peace in the world.

King Fahd went on to brief the cabinet on the talks he had held and messages he had exchanged recently with a number of Arab leaders, including Syrian President Dr. Bashar Al-Assad and Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, saying he had assured them of the Kingdom's firm stance behind the Palestinian cause, and the goal of bringing about peace and stability in the region based on the common interests of the international community and the principles of international law, which guarantee the legitimate rights of the region's people.
Turning to domestic matters, the cabinet passed a number of resolutions, including endorsement of the environment bill approved yesterday by the Supreme Economic Council; approval of the draft agreement with New Zealand on cooperation in the areas of economics, commerce, investment, technology, culture, youth and sports; endorsement of the resolutions of the 22nd international post union conference that was held in Beijing, China, in 1999; and, within its policy for saudization in the private sector, approval for priority to be given in government tenders to bids from private companies that prove they are implementing such a policy and employing and training Saudi nationals.

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