Bahrain Builds Momentum for GCC-EU Summit

Brussels meetings address strategic cooperation and stronger coordination on economic and regional security priorities.

Bahrain’s Ambassador to Belgium and Head of the Kingdom’s Mission to the European Union, Dr. Mohammed Ali Behzad, held separate meetings with senior European officials to discuss strengthening Gulf-European relations and coordination on regional issues.

The meetings were held in his capacity as representative of the country holding the presidency of the 46th session of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

Ambassador Behzad met Anna Maria Bura, Chief Foreign Policy Adviser in the Office of the President of the European Council, with the participation of Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to the EU, Haifa Abdulrahman Al-Jedea, and GCC Secretariat Mission Head to the EU, Ambassador Fahad Saqr Al-Jemaz.

Talks focused on prospects for developing the GCC-EU partnership and preparations for the second GCC-EU Summit in Saudi Arabia. The discussions also covered opportunities to expand cooperation in economic and investment fields, energy security and connectivity, while strengthening coordination on shared priorities.

In a separate meeting, Behzad met Helene Le Gal, Managing Director for the Middle East and North Africa at the European External Action Service, alongside Al-Jemaz.

The meeting reviewed GCC-EU relations and preparations for the upcoming summit, with both sides discussing ways to elevate cooperation to a strategic level.

They also exchanged views on developments in the Middle East and shared challenges to regional security, stressing the importance of closer Gulf-European coordination on priority issues and stronger consultation mechanisms to support regional and international security and stability.