The Mediterranean: Opportunities to develop EU-GCC relations?

The relationship between the European Union and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is the topic of the EU-funded al-Jisr project. Among other components, the project organises a series of workshops on issues that are of relevance for the inter-regional relationship. In this context, the Istituto Affari Internazionali invited experts from Europe, the Mediterranean and the Arab Gulf states to discuss the prospects for EU-GCC cooperation in the Mediterranean. The event took place in Rome, on December 10-11, 2009 (Pdf download: Agenda).

In particular, the participants discussed the prospects for cooperation in the fields of energy, economics, finance and investment as well as on strategic issues. Michael Bauer, head of the C·A·P project on Europe and the Middle East, chaired the panel "EU and GCC Strategic and Political Interests in the Mediterranean: Convergence and Divergence".