Gulf Cooperation Council


The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, also known as the Gulf Cooperation Council, is a regional, intergovernmental, political, and economic union and military alliance comprising Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The council's main headquarters is located in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. The Charter of the GCC was signed on 25 May 1981, formally establishing the institution.
All current member states are monarchies, including three constitutional monarchies, two absolute monarchies, and one federal monarchy. There have been discussions regarding the future membership of Jordan, Morocco, and Yemen. Iraq is the only Gulf Arab state that is not a GCC member.
During the Arab Spring in 2012, Saudi Arabia proposed to transform the GCC into a "Gulf Union" with tighter economic, political and military coordination, a move considered to be intended to counterbalance Iranian influence in the region; however, objections were raised by other countries. In 2014, Bahraini prime minister Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa said that current events in the region highlighted the importance of the proposal. The Peninsula Shield Force is the military arm of the GCC, formed in 1984.

History and founding

of Kuwait, alongside the support of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan of the UAE, played a crucial role in fostering the idea of closer cooperation among the Arab states of the Persian Gulf, laying the groundwork for the formation of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
The members' shared vision for regional unity, security, and economic integration led to the official establishment of the GCC in 1981, strengthening the collective power and influence of the Gulf countries. The charter was signed in Arabic in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on 21 Rajab 1401 on the Islamic calendar.
The signatory states on the founding document are the only current members of the GCC. An economic agreement between the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council was signed on 11 November 1981 in Abu Dhabi, UAE. These countries are often referred to as "the GCC states".

Objectives

In 2001, the GCC Supreme Council set the following goals:
Oman announced in December 2006 that it would not be able to meet the 2010 target date for a common currency. Following the announcement that the central bank for the monetary union would be located in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, rather than in the UAE, they announced their withdrawal from the monetary union project in May 2009. The name Khaleeji has been proposed as a name for this currency. If realized, the GCC monetary union would be the second-largest supranational monetary union in the world, measured by the GDP of the common-currency area, following the Eurozone.
Other stated objectives include:
  • Formulating similar regulations in various fields such as religion, finance, trade, customs, tourism, legislation, and administration.
  • Fostering scientific and technical progress in industry, mining, agriculture, water, and animal resources.
  • Establishing scientific research centers.
  • Setting up joint ventures.
  • Unified military.
  • Encouraging cooperation of the private sector.
  • Strengthening ties between their people.
File:President Obama and King Salman Deliver Statements to the Press.webm|thumb|President Obama, CIA Director Brennan, and King Salman of Saudi Arabia at the GCC–US Summit in Riyadh on 21 April 2016
The area has some of the fastest-growing economies in the world, mostly due to a boom in oil and natural gas revenues coupled with a building and investment boom backed by decades of saved petroleum revenues. In an effort to build a tax base and economic foundation before the reserves run out, the UAE's investment arms, including Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, retain over US$900 billion in assets. Other regional funds have several hundred billion dollars of assets under management.
The region is an emerging hotspot for events, including the 2006 Asian Games in Doha, Qatar. Doha also submitted an unsuccessful application for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Qatar would later host the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Recovery plans have been criticized for crowding out the private sector, failing to set clear priorities for growth, failing to restore weak consumer and investor confidence, and undermining long-term stability.

Logo

The logo of the GCC consists of two concentric circles. On the upper part of the larger circle, the phrase Bismillah - "in the name of God" - is written in Arabic, and on the lower part of the circle is written the council's full name. The inner circle contains an embossed hexagonal shape representing the six countries. The inside of the hexagon shows a map encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, on which the areas of the member countries are colored in brown, borderless.

Economy

Mergers and acquisitions

Companies and investors from GCC countries are active in mergers and acquisitions. Since 1999, more than 5,200 transactions with a known value of 573 billion had been announced. Investors include a number of sovereign wealth funds.

Internal market

A common market was launched on 1 January 2008, easing the movement of goods and services, with plans to create a fully integrated single market. Implementation later lagged behind, after the 2008 financial crisis. The creation of a customs union began in 2003 and was completed and fully operational by 1 January 2015. In January 2015, the common market was also further integrated, covering full equality among GCC citizens to work in government and private sectors, the ability to access social insurance and retirement coverage, real estate ownership rights, capital movement, and access to education, health and other social services, in all member states. However, some barriers remained in the free movement of goods and services. The coordination of taxation systems, accounting standards, and civil legislation is currently in progress. The interoperability of professional qualifications, insurance certificates, and identity documents is also underway.

Monetary union

In 2014, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia took major steps to ensure the creation of a single currency. Kuwait's finance minister said the four members are pushing ahead with the monetary union, but said some "technical points" need to be cleared. He added, "A common market and common central bank would also position the GCC as one entity that would have great influence on the international financial system". The implementation of a single currency and the creation of a central bank are overseen by the Monetary Council.
There is currently a degree to which a nominal GCC single currency already exists. Businesses trade using a basket of GCC currencies, just as before the Euro was introduced, the European Currency Unit had been used as a nominal medium of exchange. Plans to introduce a single currency had been drawn up as far back as 2009; however, due to the 2008 financial crisis and political differences, the UAE and Oman withdrew their membership.

Infrastructure

The GCC launched common economic projects to promote and facilitate integration and to increase resilience. The GCC Interconnection Grid connects the power grids of member states. In 2009, it initiated operations, and by 2013, all six members were connected. A water interconnection project has been discussed, but as of January 2023, there have been no notable developments. Unlike other leading aviation regions like the European Union, members have not agreed to an open skies policy. As such, GCC airlines do not have unlimited market access rights to member states and compete to capture international air traffic flows.
The GCC has also launched major rail projects to connect the peninsula. The railways are expected to fuel intra-regional trade while helping reduce fuel consumption. Over US$200 billion will be invested to develop about of rail network across the GCC, according to Oman's Minister of Transport and Communications. According to Ramiz Al Assar, Resident World Bank advisor for the GCC, it will link the six member states as a regional transport corridor, further integrating with the national railway projects, deepening economic, social, and political integration, and it will be developed from a sustainable perspective.
The project, estimated to be worth $15.5 billion, was scheduled to be completed by 2021. As of May 2022, railway construction in the UAE and Saudi Arabia has progressed significantly, but other members' efforts have lagged. Saudi Arabian Railways, Etihad Rail, and their respective national governments have invested 15 billion dollars as of early 2015 into railway infrastructure to create rail networks for transporting freight, connecting cities, and reducing transport times.

Free trade agreements

The Gulf Cooperation Council has free trade agreements with the following countries:
Nation No of nations
represented		NameSignedEffectiveCoverageRef.
European Free Trade Association
Iceland

Politics and governance

Supreme Council

The GCC Supreme Council is composed of the heads of state of the member states. It is the highest decision-making entity of the GCC, setting its vision and goals. Decisions on important issues require unanimous approval, while issues on procedural matters require a majority. Each member state has one vote. The presidency rotates based on the Arabic alphabetical order of the names of the member states.

Ministerial Council

The Ministerial Council is composed of the Foreign Ministers of all the member states. It convenes every three months. It formulates policies and makes recommendations to promote cooperation and achieve coordination among the member states when implementing ongoing projects. Decisions are submitted in the form of recommendations, which the Supreme Council can approve. The Ministerial Council is also responsible for the preparation of meetings of the Supreme Council and its agenda. The voting procedure in the Ministerial Council is the same as in the Supreme Council.