BRUSSELS: National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanem (left) speaks during a press conference with the European Parliament chief David Sassoli in Brussels, Belgium yesterday. - KUNA

BRUSSELS: Lawmakers from across the Arabian Gulf region will come together with their European counterparts for talks in Kuwait soon, the country's top lawmaker said yesterday, citing bilateral relations as the primary focus of the meeting. The talks will also address "matters of mutual concern," National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanem told a press conference alongside European Parliament (EP) chief David Sassoli, who has given the thumbs up for the encounter, he said.

He highlighted such talks as an opportunity to "find common ground" on an array of issues, chief among them the Palestinian cause, which requires urgent action on the part of the international community to cease "Zionist abusive practices" against the Palestinian people, he said.

He went on to mention Kuwait's penchant for humanitarian endeavors, listing the aid it has given to war-battered countries such as Iraq and Yemen as a case in point, in addition to its efforts to quell a Gulf Arab dispute. "It is incumbent upon us to utilize all forms of diplomacy as means to protect regional peace and security," Sassoli said, acknowledging Kuwait's efforts towards similar causes. - KUNA