Differences effectively derail the Gulf Cooperation Council Summit, reports Sherine Bahaa There was little cause for celebration at the 25th summit of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Bahrain. Indeed, bitter divisions surfaced even before the summit began. The GCC, a political and economic alliance formed in 1981, groups Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, the UAE and Qatar. Leaders of the Gulf states were confined for two days to the Ritz Hotel where, amid tight security, they attempted to sort out growing differences among the member states. Few observers were convinced by the show of solidarity. Crown Prince Abdullah Bin Saud, Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, was conspicuously absent. Saudi Defence Minister Prince Sultan Bin Abdul-Aziz, number three in the Saudi hierarchy, headed his country's delegation. Abdullah's absence was reportedly due to growing intra-Gulf differences, not least over the free trade agreement signed between the summit's host, Bahrain, and the United States. He snubbed the two-day gathering, which started on Monday, after Riyadh failed to dissuade its partners from pressing ahead with their own free trade agreements with the US. Riyadh had been vocal in its opposition to the free trade accord signed in September between Bahrain and the US. Saudi Arabia is the only GCC state that is not a member of the World Trade Organisation. Pressure from Riyadh, though, is unlikely to influence other GCC states, all of which look likely to follow Bahrain's lead and sign their own agreements with Washington. Riyadh is far from happy about the possibility, fearing that its own interests would be compromised. Long considered Washington's closest ally among the group, there are signs that Saudi influence with the US is slipping. Following a spate of attacks on US interests in the kingdom the US airforce decided last year to shift its regional base from Saudi to Qatar, fuelling speculation about waning Saudi influence. For its part, Riyadh argues that acting outside the GCC hampers efforts to integrate the group's economies and compromises the collective bargaining power of member states. The simmering debate over trade overshadowed the proceedings of the summit and one session, on Monday afternoon, was cancelled. Apart from the trade deals the two-day summit's agenda included security and defence treaties, the situation in Iraq and the importance of reform. Yet it appears that Saudi-Bahraini tensions effectively derailed the summit. The two- day meeting comprised many discussions, but nothing more solid. Reform, in the convoluted logic of such gatherings, became renewal, a term favoured by Bahrain's Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Mohamed Abdul-Ghaffar. Renewal, he argued, is necessary for any country in the 21st century if it moves ahead. Security presented another thorny issue at the summit. Discussions were confined to the possibility of establishing a GCC security system capable of standing up to the threats racing the region's oil fields. "Security is a very important issue for us and it was on the agenda of the summit. There are existing security arrangements between GCC countries at present. The question is how we can engage Iran and Iraq with the GCC and with other countries who have interests in the region," said Abdul-Ghaffar. Tellingly, the summit's final communiqué failed to include a single resolution on any of the agenda's important topics. Apart from a statement urging the US be a fair broker in the Middle East and calling on Washington to kick-start the peace process and coordinate with the UN over Iraqi elections, nothing concrete was adopted. Monetary union, a common market and single currency, which had been high on the summit's agenda, were passed over with barely a mention. GCC states launched a customs union in January 2003 and have ambitious plans to establish a monetary union by next year, a common market by 2007 and a single currency by the start of 2010. This week's summit merely skirted the issues, calling into question the timetable. Nor did the summit address the issue of expatriate labour. With so much unresolved, the GCC is entering 2005 with more questions than answers.
