SEPANG: Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states’ leaders and delegates have begun departing for home following the conclusion of the 2nd ASEAN-GCC Summit and the inaugural ASEAN-GCC-China Summit in Kuala Lumpur here.
Among GCC leaders departing today were the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Farhan Al Saud, and United Arab Emirates (UAE) Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi.
Sheikh Tamim and his delegation were boarded on a special aircraft flight at noon at the Bunga Raya Complex of the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and sent off by Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani.
In the late afternoon, at around 5.35 pm, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Farhan Al Saud also departed for home aboard a special aircraft, followed by UAE Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, who left at 6.32pm.
Prince Faisal and his entourage were sent off by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) Datuk Mohd Na’im Mokhtar, while the UAE delegation was sent off by Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin.
Before their departure, all three leaders were given a red carpet ceremonial send-off and a guard-of-honour mounted by 28 officers and personnel from the First Battalion of the Royal Ranger Regiment (Ceremonial), led by Capt J. Lingesri Rao.
Earlier, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, in his opening remarks at the ASEAN-GCC Summit, described the gathering as exceptional in the context of Southeast Asia.
Anwar highlighted the presence of ASEAN leaders alongside representatives from the region’s most dynamic GCC countries as a testament to the growing mutual trust and friendship between the two blocs.
