Seven months after the start of Operation Epic Fury and the Iranian attacks that followed, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed al-Budaiwi has a clear message for those questioning the unity of the six-member bloc: "The Gulf is more united than ever."
“What we have been going through since Feb 28 with the barbaric attacks by Iran made us even more unified. We’re even stronger,” al-Budaiwi said in Manama, Bahrain, on 'Arab Views', a new flagship show hosted by Arab News Editor-in-Chief Faisal J Abbas. The attacks, al-Budaiwi said, had demonstrated the resilience of the Gulf states and shown the international community how they had stood together against thousands of missiles and drones.
“We have seen our friends, our brothers in the region standing by us, the international community standing by us,” he said, pointing to a unanimous UN Security Council resolution that he said had attracted an unprecedented number of sponsors. “This tells you that the world is with us. The international community is with us. The Gulf Cooperation Council has cooperated among the six members in every single aspect.”
Al-Budaiwi’s assessment comes amid questions over whether the crisis has exposed differences among Gulf capitals about how best to respond to Iran, particularly on military and security policy. Some of the criticism has come from international media, including a report by Euronews ahead of the GCC summit in Jeddah in April that cited a lack of co-ordination and the absence of some Gulf leaders as evidence of divisions.
Al-Budaiwi said critics had a right to question the GCC’s performance, but rejected as cynical the suggestion that the bloc had failed to coordinate its response. “Yes, they have the right to criticise. They have the right to be skeptical. Because they want to see more co-ordination,” he said. “But to say that there is no co-ordination or co-operation, that is totally wrong.”
He cited an extraordinary GCC summit, three extraordinary ministerial meetings and hundreds of meetings involving ministers, undersecretaries and council committees as evidence of the bloc’s response. The April 28 summit in Jeddah had delegated the GCC Secretariat to advance co-operation in five areas — logistics, water connectivity, the electricity grid, strategic storage and the bloc’s long-delayed railway project.
The electricity grid, which al-Budaiwi said was operating at full capacity, was also being expanded, with Iraq being brought into the network. The crisis had offered a particularly clear demonstration of Gulf solidarity, he said, because Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait had relied heavily on the Strait of Hormuz as a maritime passage while the conflict disrupted regional transport.
Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Oman had helped their neighbours by opening ports, facilitating the movement of trucks and providing access to airports and storage facilities. “The amount of help and assistance they got from the UAE, Saudi Arabia and the Sultanate of Oman is amazing,” al-Budaiwi said. “The ports were open for us. They deregulated for us. They accepted all the movements from our trucks. They opened the airports, they opened the storage. This is the greatest co-operation.” He said co-ordination extended beyond logistics to media, military affairs, security, food security, electricity, energy and health, with co-operation increasing substantially after Feb 28.
“There was a great deal of co-operation on the military side,” he said, explaining that each Gulf country had pursued its own national response while co-ordinating with its neighbours. Some had sent personnel or ammunition to assist other members, while others had transferred entire missile systems, he said.
Al-Budaiwi acknowledged that countries had their own responsibilities in confronting the Iranian threat, but said that did not preclude collective assistance. “I am more proud to be from the Gulf now than ever because of what I have seen,” he said. “I am a witness to what has happened and still happening as we speak.”
He reiterated that the level of military cooperation among GCC members was already at its highest possible level. The issue also arose in relation to Yemen, where the internationally recognized government, backed by the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy, is seeking to reclaim territory held by the Houthi militia. The GCC has condemned Houthi actions inside Yemen as well as attacks against Saudi Arabia. Riyadh, meanwhile, has kept open the possibility of diplomacy, provided the Houthis are willing to return to negotiations.
Despite the conflict, Al-Budaiwi said he remained optimistic that the Gulf states and Iran could eventually establish normal relations. Asked whether Tehran would be closer to its Gulf neighbours or remain an adversary a year from now, he said geography made coexistence unavoidable and that the GCC had repeatedly expressed its desire for better relations. “They are our neighbours, we are their neighbours, we are next to each other until the end of all days,” he said. He said that required mutual respect, adherence to international law, noninterference in other countries’ affairs and a willingness to exchange positive messages.