Ursula von der Leyen considered that the Gulf Cooperation summit is a “historic first” and that it comes at a “crucial moment.” The summit should bring the Gulf Cooperation Council closer to the EU.
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The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, spoke this Wednesday of a “historic debut” in relations between the European Union (EU) and the Gulf countries at the first joint summit in Brussels, which “comes at a time crucial” .
“The Gulf Cooperation Council summit is a historic first in EU-Gulf relations and comes at a crucial time,” wrote Ursula von der Leyen, in a post on the social network X.
The GCC summit is a historic first in EU-Gulf relations and comes at a crucial time.
In times of conflict and climate challenges, Europe will always be a partner for peace and economic progress ↓ https://t.co/RhO1nYnRfy
— Úrsula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) October 16, 2024
“In times of conflict and climate challenges, Europe will always be a partner for peace and economic progress,” said the leader of the community executive.
This Wednesday the first summit between the EU and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council takes place in Brussels, Belgium, in which the two political-economic blocs discuss the conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine.
The meeting began at 4:00 p.m. local time (3:00 p.m. in Lisbon) and European Council President Charles Michel said he hoped for a deepening of relations between the two blocs, which “are deeply connected.”
The summit was organized with the purpose of developing a closer partnership with the countries that make up the Gulf Cooperation Council. (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait).
Still, current affairs dominate the meeting, which is punctuated by discussions of conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine.
Therefore, the Gulf Cooperation Council countries have a larger sphere of influence than the EU in the Middle East, especially in Iran and Lebanon.
The climate of conflict in the Middle East worsened a year ago with the Israeli invasion of the Palestinian enclave of the Gaza Strip, after an unprecedented attack by Hamas in Israel that caused around 1,200 deaths and two hundred hostages, according to Israeli authorities.
Following the attack by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, Israel launched a large-scale offensive in the Gaza Strip, which has already caused more than 42,000 deaths, mostly civilians, and a humanitarian disaster, destabilizing the entire Middle East region.
The involvement of the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah, an ally of Hamas and supported by Iran, opened a new front and led to an intense Israeli bombing campaign and, in recent weeks, a ground offensive on Lebanese soil.
Israel’s incursions are being widely criticized by most of the international community, which accuses Tel Aviv of a disproportionate military intervention without any concern for civilians.
The war in Ukraine will also be discussed at this summit, especially since the Gulf Cooperation Council countries have relations with Russia.
Saudi Arabia and Russia limit oil supplies to “support the stability and balance of oil markets”
Countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar have a more favorable position towards Russia and have not stopped trading with Moscow, despite calls from EU countries and the United States of America.
The EU has cooperation agreements with the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council and has been trying without success to reach a trade agreement with the region for more than 30 years.
Source: Observadora
