The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)
Intergovernmental organisations · The alliance of the Arabian Gulf monarchies
The Gulf Cooperation Council is a political and economic union of the six Arab monarchies of the Persian Gulf, whose oil wealth gives them outsized weight in the wider Islamic world.
At a glance
| Founded | 1981 (charter signed, Abu Dhabi) |
|---|---|
| Members | Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman |
| Headquarters | Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |
| Type | political & economic union |
Founded in 1981 amid the upheavals of the Iranian Revolution and the Iran–Iraq War, the GCC binds together Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman — states that share a common Gulf-Arab culture, hereditary monarchical government, and economies built on hydrocarbons. From its secretariat in Riyadh it has pursued closer integration: a common market, a customs union, coordinated defence through the Peninsula Shield Force, and long-discussed but unrealised plans for a single currency.
The bloc's cohesion has been tested by rivalries among its members. Between 2017 and 2021 Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt severed ties with and blockaded fellow member Qatar in a dispute over regional policy; the rift was formally healed at the Al-Ula summit in January 2021. Chronicle describes such episodes as reported disputes without adjudicating the competing claims.
Beyond the Gulf, the GCC's financial power — its sovereign wealth funds, aid, and investment — makes it a major force in the economies and politics of the broader Muslim world, and a frequent counterpart to the OIC, the Arab League and outside powers alike.
Related in Chronicle
Curated reference on Islamic belief and thought. On matters where traditions differ, positions are attributed rather than adjudicated; verify points of doctrine with qualified scholars.