CULF COOPERATION COUNCIL NOW MORE STRENGTH

The Gulf Cooperation Council (CCG is the multilateral platform that supports diplomacy in the Arabian Peninsula, an area in full swing that sets the agenda for the Middle East. The Arab forum, divided into blocs since the outbreak of the Arab Spring, continues to be subject to strong internal tensions despite the diplomatic rapprochement between Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and other members of the organization with Qatar, the wayward partner who promoted the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood after the revolutionary outbreak and that built bridges with Turkey and Iran, hostile actors for the interests of the group.

The Al-Ula declaration, signed in January 2021 by the six members that make up the CCG, served to definitively bury the hatchet after the lengthy boycott of Qatar. Since then, relations with Doha have improved at all levels. They have done it, yes, unevenly. While the Saudis and Qataris resumed direct flights, reopened land borders — in fact, the only land border for tiny Qatar — and restored diplomatic relations, the Emiratis and Qataris are advancing more slowly.