Doha to Host Gulf-Türkiye, Gulf-Yemen Ministerial Meetings Sunday

The Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council receiving the Yemeni Minister of Foreign Affairs (GCC)
The Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council receiving the Yemeni Minister of Foreign Affairs (GCC)
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Doha to Host Gulf-Türkiye, Gulf-Yemen Ministerial Meetings Sunday

The Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council receiving the Yemeni Minister of Foreign Affairs (GCC)
The Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council receiving the Yemeni Minister of Foreign Affairs (GCC)

The Qatari capital, Doha, is poised to host two ministerial meetings—one Gulf-Turkish and the other Gulf-Yemeni—aimed at deliberating on bilateral relations between the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Türkiye, and Yemen, seeking to bolster and elevate them.
The agenda also includes discussions on regional and international issues of mutual concern, particularly the ongoing conflict in Gaza and Rafah, along with its political, security, and humanitarian developments.
According to the GCC, its Secretary-General, Jasim Al-Budaiwi, met on Thursday with Shaya Mohsin Al-Zindani, the Yemeni Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriate Affairs, underscoring the significance of the joint ministerial meeting of foreign ministers from GCC countries and Yemen.
The Secretary-General reiterated the GCC’s full support, as articulated in the statement of the Supreme Council of the GCC in its 44th session, for the Presidential Leadership Council headed by Dr. Rashad Al-Alimi, and the supporting entities, to achieve security and stability in Yemen.
This reaffirms the GCC’s backing for efforts aimed at reaching a comprehensive political solution to the Yemeni crisis, in accordance with the three references: the Gulf Initiative and its executive mechanism, the outcomes of the Comprehensive National Dialogue Conference, and UN Security Council Resolution 2216, to achieve security and stability in Yemen.
Al-Budaiwi also discussed with the Turkish Ambassador to Riyadh, Emrullah İsler, on Wednesday, the key preparations for the upcoming Sixth High-Level Strategic Dialogue of Foreign Ministers of GCC countries and Türkiye, scheduled to take place next Sunday in Doha.
The strategic dialogue meetings commenced in September 2008 in the western Saudi province of Jeddah, affirming the ministers’ shared desire to enhance and diversify these close relations across all fields.
The fifth meeting took place in October 2016 at the headquarters of the Gulf Cooperation Council Secretariat General in Riyadh. During this meeting, ministers expressed their satisfaction with the fifth round of the strategic dialogue, aiming to make progress on shared priorities.



Gulf, EU Leaders Meet for First Summit against Background of Mideast Turmoil

European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Saudi Arabia Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud pose during an official welcome ceremony on the day of the joint European Union and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit, in Brussels Belgium October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Saudi Arabia Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud pose during an official welcome ceremony on the day of the joint European Union and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit, in Brussels Belgium October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
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Gulf, EU Leaders Meet for First Summit against Background of Mideast Turmoil

European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Saudi Arabia Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud pose during an official welcome ceremony on the day of the joint European Union and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit, in Brussels Belgium October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Saudi Arabia Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud pose during an official welcome ceremony on the day of the joint European Union and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit, in Brussels Belgium October 16, 2024. (Reuters)

The leaders of six Gulf nations and European Union met for an inaugural summit on Wednesday against a backdrop of turmoil in the Middle East and struggles to find a unified position on the war in Ukraine and relations with Russia.

Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, led Saudi Arabia’s delegation to the meeting in Brussels.

The summit was expected to encompass everything from visas and trade to the situation in the Middle East.

Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said the summit was “long overdue” and added that “the economic ties between the European Union and the Gulf countries need to be strengthened."

“They are there, but they have the potential to be developed much, much further,” he said.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stressed that “to be strategic partners means to listen to each other, to respect each other, to trust each other.”

She also highlighted the need for cooperation on pressing geopolitical issues like the war in Ukraine and that of Israel against Hamas and Hezbollah groups.

“We cannot implement our economic ambitions without security,” she said.

The 27-nation EU has long had relations with the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, which include Qatar, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait.