Qatar chairs GCC-EU regional security dialogue meet

Qatar presided over the first meeting of the regional security dialogue between the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and the European Union (EU) on Wednesday.

Held at the headquarters of the GCC General Secretariat in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the meeting was attended by representatives of the GCC countries and the General Secretariat.

The meeting was chaired on behalf of Qatar as the current president by Director of Policy and Planning Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs HE Dr Khalid bin Fahad Al Khater, while the EU side was headed by Deputy Secretary General for Peace, Security and Defence Charles Fries.

Representatives of security and military agencies and institutions in the GCC countries and the General Secretariat took part in the meeting.

During the meeting, the two sides also exchanged views on issues of common interest, including the war on Gaza and the regional escalation in the Gulf region, the Middle East, Europe and the Horn of Africa.

The meeting discussed ways of enhancing joint GCC-EU cooperation to respond to regional challenges, intensify work to strengthen defence and security structures and exchange experiences, and explored available opportunities to increase cooperation in peace and security projects.

In an opening speech, Khater affirmed that more than 100 days after the outbreak of the war on Gaza, the world is witnessing one of the bloodiest conflicts, adding that it is clear that the consequences of the Israeli attacks on Gaza and the continuation of the war are dire, and they have repercussions on regional security in the Gulf region and the Middle East and even at the international level, and they undermine the joint ability to manage the current and resulting future threats.

He pointed out that the GCC and the EU represent two strong blocs that can have a decisive influence on current events.