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Arab
League
The
Arab League or League of Arab States is an organization
of Arab states formed to give political expression to
the newly-independent Arab states. Representatives of:
Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Transjordan (Jordan)
met in Alexandria, Egypt, and agreed to form the League.
They signed the founding document, Alexandria
Protocol on October 7, 1944 thereby formally inaugurating
the league.
On
March 22, 1945, Saudia Arabia and Yemen joined the founding
members and broadened the League. The espoused goals
were spelled out in the League's
Charter.
The
Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was granted
full membership in 1976. Other current members include
Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Djibouti, Eritrea, Kuwait,
Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Somalia, Sudan,
Tunisia, and the United Arab Emirates.
The
League's main goal is defined in its Charter as:
Serve
the common good of all Arab countries, ensure better
conditions for all Arab countries, guarantee the future
of all Arab countries and fulfill the hopes and expectations
of all Arab countries.
The League's Charter states that the League shall coordinate
economic affairs, including commercial relations; communications;
cultural affairs; nationality, passports, and visas;
social affairs; and health affairs.
Among
the most important activities of the Arab League have
been its attempts to coordinate Arab economic life;
efforts toward this aim include the Arab Telecommunications
Union (1953), the Arab Postal Union (1954), and the
Arab Development Bank (1959, later known as the Arab
Financial Organization). The Arab Common Market was
established in 1965 and is open to all Arab League members.
The common market agreement provides for the eventual
abolition of customs duties on natural resources and
agricultural products, free movement of capital and
labor among member countries, and coordination of economic
development.
The
Charter of the Arab League also forbids member states
from resorting to force against each other as a means
to resolve disputes.
It
is similar to the Organization of American States, the
Council of Europe or the former Organization for African
Unity, in that its aims are primarily political; all
of these organizations can be considered to be regional
versions of the United Nations.
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