The EU heads of state and government and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) held their first summit on October 16 in Brussels under the theme “Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity” to discuss the deepening partnership between the two blocs, including green energy and critical minerals.
The summit, which was attended by EU and Gulf leaders including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, also known as MBS, was co-chaired by EU Council President Charles Michel and the Emir of the State of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, as rotating President of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
“With this summit, we send a powerful message to our citizens and to the world: the EU and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are ready to build a Strategic Partnership fit for the 21st century. We are ready to work together to tackle global challenges. We want more stability, more security, more prosperity and more respect for international law,” Michel said at the opening session of the EU-GCC summit.
“As regional organizations, we also have a key role to play in conflict resolution, addressing climate change, strengthening multilateralism and human rights,” he added. “Today global stability is once again under threat as a result of the dramatic situation in the Middle East, Russia’s war against Ukraine and the tragic situation in Sudan. These crises have caused enormous human suffering, so we must act more decisively and, again, change the course of history,” Michel said.
The EU partnership with Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates will also seek to boost economic cooperation, including trade and investment, as well as energy, clean tech, sustainability and climate.
The EU is also looking at Gulf states for critical minerals needed in the green transition, renewable energy and hydrogen production.
“We cannot implement our ambitions for sustainable growth without securing essential resources,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in her opening speech. “As COP28 has proven last year, we are committed partners in the green transition. Gulf economies, like ours are making big strides in energy diversification. We both need critical raw materials to advance clean technologies. With your support, we can meet these demands responsibly. This is where our partnership can have great impact,” she added.
“Europe is equipped to bring cutting-edge sustainable technology to mining and refining operations in your region. So, together, we can develop the industries of tomorrow and build the local skills needed to sustain this transformation,” von der Leyen said.
Seeking clean energy partnerships
“Energy partnerships can be the foundation for a bold new era. The Gulf is beginning a significant energy transformation, and I firmly believe that the energy advantages of this region extend to renewables, clean hydrogen, carbon capture utilization, and storage. And we observe that clean energy projects by companies from the Gulf are becoming more and more visible within the region and beyond. This is the moment to work together to develop new value chains and markets for clean energy. By investing in interconnections and infrastructure, your region could become a clean energy hub, connecting Europe, Asia and Africa. That is why we are joining forces in ambitious projects like IME (India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor): the first-ever Economic Corridor, connecting India, the Middle East and Europe,” von der Leyen said.
The Commission President also held a meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince to discuss building the economic corridor to increase trade in renewable energy, data and people-to-people exchanges.
Good meeting with Mohammed bin Salman.
We want to strengthen EU-GCC cooperation.
Build an economic corridor to increase trade in renewable energy, data and people-to-people exchanges.
And work together to ensure the security we all need for economic growth. pic.twitter.com/X5QoqjsmUO
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) October 16, 2024
“Crown Prince Mohammed (MBS) has several objectives in engaging with the EU at this time,” Chris Weafer, CEO of Macro-Advisory, the leading independent strategic business consultancy in the Eurasia region, told NE Global on October 17. “He wants to better position Saudi Arabia as a neutral but influential actor on the global stage. For too long the Kingdom has been regarded as not much more than a big gas station with too much money to spend on luxuries. MBS is trying to change that, to better position the economy ‘beyond oil’ and also to be the viewed as the main voice of the Arab world,” he said.
“There are many in Saudi who believe that the oil exporting nations only have about ten years left in terms of pricing power. MBS is in a hurry to try and build a more diversified economy by investing in renewable energy projects, technology, tourism, logistics, etc. He does not want to rely on U.S. or Chinese investment dominance so wants more investment and partnerships from Europe. Europe is a much easier partner than either of the other two,” Weafer said.
In her opening speech at the EU-GCC summit, von der Leyen urged Gulf leaders to help to bring peace to Ukraine and “work together and rely on you to stop this illegal Russian war.”
Regarding Ukraine, in the final statement reaffirmed respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states, recognized the efforts of the EU and Switzerland in contributing to just and lasting peace in Ukraine and condemned attacks against civilians and civilian and critical infrastructure, especially in the energy sector. Russia was mentioned only in reference to UN General Assembly Resolution ES-11/1, which “deplores in the strongest terms the aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine in violation of Article 2 (4) of the Charter” and “demands that the Russian Federation immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.”
MBS sees Saudi mediation role in Russia-Ukraine war
Weafer argued that Saudi Arabia has already played a role in some mediations between Russia and Ukraine, and it appears that MBS wants to expand that so that Riyadh can have a much greater role in any efforts to move the conflict onto a peace process. “There is speculation that he has offered Riyadh as a neutral venue in which to hold such talks. He has good relations with President (Vladimir) Putin but has always kept his distance in terms of providing political support. He can also say that Russia needs to listen to Saudi Arabia because the production deal, via OPEC+, is critical for Russia’s economic well being,” he opined. “In that sense, Saudi and China are the two key partnership countries for Russia but China’s often difficult relations with the West means it cannot play a mediation role. Saudi Arabia can,” Weafer explained.
“MBS also wants to replicate what he sees in both Qatar and the UAE; the former has a strong global profile because it has had a key role in mediation with the Taliban and with Iran for most of the past decade. The latter has also played a mediation role in many regional disputes, including with several prisoner swaps between Moscow and Kyiv. MBS wants that role for Saudi Arabia as part of his effort to position the Kingdom as not just the region’s biggest economy but also the most important in the Arab world,” Weafer said, adding, “Hiring Ronaldo and staging world title boxing events gets you so far. Hosting the peace talks that ends the Russia-Ukraine conflict is a different league and MBS wants that.”