President David Granger arrived yesterday in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to attend the inaugural Arab-Islamic-American Summit, which is being held under the theme ‘Together We Prevail’. Leading the Guyana delegation, which includes Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Carl Greenidge; Director General at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Audrey Waddell, and Director of the Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG), Sheikh Moen ul-Hack, the Head of State said that his main focus at the Summit is to support the position that terrorism is a transnational crime, which requires a transnational response.
President David Granger received military honours on arrival in Riyadh and was welcomed by representatives of the Monarch of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
President Granger, who is also the current Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), will use the opportunity to advance the interests of small states, with regard to their unique security challenges.
“We are very grateful for the initiative on the part of the Kingdom. We are entirely in accord with the need for a transnational response to this transnational crime and we ask that the special security concerns of small states should be kept in mind when any plans are being developed,” he said. President Granger added that when he received the invitation to attend the Summit, which aims to renew, among participating States, the mutual commitment to global security and further strengthen business, cultural and political ties, from Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, he immediately recognised the importance of Guyana’s participation.
The Head of State noted that Guyana will use the opportunity to advance its national, regional and international interests and said that Government is aware of the dangers of extremism and is, therefore, calling for a collaborative national effort to prevent its incidence in the country, in addition to the work being done at the transnational level.
This is President Granger’s second visit to Saudi Arabia, since taking office, following his 2015 attendance at the Arab-South American Summit (ASPA).