Historic EU-GCC Summit aims to forge unprecedented partnership

The first EU-GCC Summit, convening Wednesday in Brussels, aims to elevate the strategic partnership between the European Union and the Gulf Co-operation Council to unprecedented levels, EU ambassador to Qatar Dr Cristian Tudor has said.Speaking to reporters Tuesday at his residence in Doha, the envoy said the summit will focus on strengthening co-operation across numerous sectors, including trade, energy, security, and humanitarian aid, amid a complex regional geopolitical landscape."This Summit is a key milestone to give a further boost to the region-to-region partnership. As the first-ever Summit at the level of heads of state, it confirms the intention held by both blocs to elevate the growing partnership between the EU and the GCC to the strategic level,” Tudor said.The summit, co-chaired by European Council President Charles Michel and His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, will bring together a high-level delegation including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, High Representative and Vice President Josep Borrell Fontelles, and heads of state and government from all six GCC member states and the 27 EU member states.Tudor highlighted the summit’s ambition to build upon previous collaborations, including the 2022 EU Joint Communication for a Strategic Partnership and recent high-level forums focused on regional security and cooperation."A stronger partnership with the Gulf on these themes will allow to address arising challenges together. Amid the current geopolitical situation in the Middle East and the risk of a regional escalation, the EU appreciates the efforts of GCC members towards de-escalation of tensions."The summit will be an opportunity for the EU and the GCC to work together on crucial themes of mutual interest and build a partnership based on sustainable prosperity and stability for both sides,” he said.The agenda includes enhancing trade and investment co-operation, fostering the green and digital transitions, and promoting sustainable energy solutions.Tudor underlined the importance of people-to-people connections, noting the EU’s commitment to supporting initiatives such as Erasmus+ to facilitate exchanges in education, research, and cultural diplomacy."The EU aims to continue and deepen the EU-GCC partners Human Rights Dialogues on the basis of mutual respect,” he pointed out, citing the recent successful EU-Qatar Human Rights Dialogue as an example.The envoy said the summit will also address critical security concerns, including regional de-escalation efforts, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and countering terrorism and cyber threats."The security of our regions is deeply interconnected. Therefore, strategic co-ordination on key regional security files (de-escalation in the Middle East, a political solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, regional nuclear non-proliferation, Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, violence in the Horn of Africa) is an important deliverable of the Summit."The current regional security situation is fragile. The EU remains committed to engaging with regional actors to call for diplomacy, dialogue, restraint and to prevent further military escalation. We are grateful to our Gulf partners for their intensive efforts to date,” he said.He confirmed that the EU and GCC will discuss enhanced co-operation on maritime security, in the context of recent threats in the Red Sea, and the ongoing efforts in Operation Atalanta and Operation Aspides.Tudor added that the summit aims to establish a framework for collaboration on humanitarian aid, leveraging the strengths of both blocs to address growing needs in the region and beyond.He noted that the next annual EU-GCC Business Forum is set to take place by the end of November in Doha."The EU and the GCC are on track to discuss together themes of common interest with an emphasis to trade and investment. This is a strong political signal to business communities in the Gulf, including with the exploration of potential EU chambers of commerce in all GCC states,” Tudor said.