Gulf states plan closer union

GULF Arab leaders meeting today are expected to announce closer political union, starting with Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.

Leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which also includes Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman, are to meet in Riyadh as they grow increasingly concerned over Iran and al-qaeda after the Arab uprisings.

Local media reported Saudi Arabia might initially seek closer union with Bahrain, where majority Shi’ite Muslims have rebelled against a monarchy that, like the other GCC dynasties, is Sunni Muslim and allied to the United States.

“I expect there will be an announcement of two or three countries. We can’t be sure but I have a strong expectation,” Samira Rajab, minister of information affairs, said yesterday.

“Sovereignty will remain with each and they would remain as UN members but they would unite in decisions regarding foreign security, military and economy.”

Saudi Arabia wants Bahrain’s government and opposition to resolve the political crisis. Both countries have accused Shi’ite Iran of fomenting the violence in Bahrain’s capital Manama, and of instigating protests among Saudi Arabia’s Shi’ite minority. Tehran denies the charges.

Rajab said, however, there were reservations among some GCC members over the idea of a closer union, and it was too early to say if any agreement taken among Gulf leaders would require a referendum in Bahrain or not.

Some members of the GCC fear a closer union might grant too much sway to the body’s largest member, Saudi Arabia. Gulf leaders also fear the Arab Spring uprisings last year created more opportunities for al-qaeda to gain a foothold in Yemen. — Reuters

relations,