Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi renewed his call for the creation of a joint Arab military force during his Sunday inauguration of the 12th conference of the Arab Thought Foundation hosted in Cairo. The president said that the formation of such a force would be "one of the important tools of integration in the Arab world to defend the causes of the Arab nations." He stated that Arab economic integration would be reached by achieving political and security stability. Al-Sisi previously proposed the idea of having a joint Arab military force in March during the Arab Economic Summit in Sharm El-Sheikh. Steps were taken by the League of Arab States and Arab ministers of defence to form the force, though the process was postponed indefinitely in August. The Egyptian president also spoke about the importance of enforcing the role of the League of Arab States and the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organisation (ALECSO) in developing relations between the Arab countries through governmental and non-governmental organisations in order to face radicalism. Al-Sisi also stressed the importance of economic integration between Arab countries and the need to promote the role of Arab finance institutions in order to support economic development in the region. The Arab Thought Foundation is an NGO founded by Saudi Prince Khalid Bin Faisal Al-Saud, and aims to advance economic, social and cultural development in the Arab region. This year, the conference is held from 6 to 8 December in Cairo and is focusing on Arab integration. source:
