De-escalation in the Middle East, trade agreements and energy partnerships. The themes at the center of the first summit between the European Union and the Persian Gulf states on 16 October are many and interconnected. One of the protagonists of the meeting, albeit from behind the scenes, will be Luigi Di Maio. The former Italian Foreign Minister became the EU’s special representative in the region last year and has since been working to prepare a meeting that Brussels considers fundamental from many points of view.
The EU asks the Gulf states for help in the chaos in the Middle East
Brussels’ original intent was to push its Gulf partners (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates) to isolate Russia by agreeing on strong language on the military assault on Ukraine, but it is now It is clear that a position that puts all the blame on Moscow will not be adopted. However, there is greater agreement on the Middle East. For almost a year, Hezbollah has regularly fired on Israeli positions near the Lebanese border. The attacks launched in response by Israel in Lebanon, including against the UNIFIL peacekeeping mission, have pushed the EU to call more insistently for a ceasefire in Gaza and a broader de-escalation. Objectives that it could broadly share with its wealthy Gulf partners.
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The risks of a wider regional war will be “the main topic” of the summit, EU diplomats said. The European institutions will be present with great fanfare. The participation of the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, the head of EU diplomacy, Josep Borrell, and the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, are expected. The last two have outgoing roles and will soon be replaced respectively by Kaja Kallas and Antonio Costa, but they would like to bring home a concrete result or at least a perspective on the Middle Eastern dossier. On the Gulf side, the most anticipated are Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who de facto governs Saudi Arabia, and the Emir of Qatar, Tamim ben Hamad Al-Thani, current president of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
Di Maio’s role in relations with the Gulf region
Working behind the scenes on the preparation of the summit was the Italian Luigi Di Maio, appointed in May 2023 as the EU’s special representative for relations with the Persian Gulf region. According to the previews provided by the special representative, the Gulf States will play a central role for the “day-after” in Palestine. Another point of contact between the EU and the GCC was the European Aspides mission. “The mission, despite having a defensive character, has a fundamental role in the Europe-Asia corridor of the Red Sea”, underlined Di Maio in a recent interview with the newspaper Formiche.net. The mission has already escorted over 240 ships, receiving logistical support from GCC countries, in particular Oman, to protect commercial transport threatened by Yemen’s Houthis.
Renewables and hydrogen at the center of commercial agreements
In addition to regional security, business is also at the center of the summit. The EU is the second largest trading partner of the GCC countries, but talks on a free trade agreement, which began 35 years ago, were suspended in 2008. Everything fell apart due to a disagreement on the opening of public tenders and petroleum products. European officials have guaranteed that they intend to pursue other avenues to promote trade and investment cooperation. According to what was reported by Reuters In March, the UAE urged Brussels to start talks on a separate trade pact.
What are the sectors that most interest the 27 EU member states? From oil-producing countries, the Gulf States have invested heavily in the energy transition. Attention will be paid in particular to renewable energy and specifically to hydrogen, as Di Maio himself clarified. “There is already a memorandum of understanding between the EU and Saudi Arabia, and we must take into account intersections of interests. For example, from 2030 the EU will have to import large quantities of hydrogen, a sector in which the GCC countries aim to become global leader”, underlined the former five-star member.
Ambiguous relations with Moscow
While the Gulf area is seen as a “key energy partner” to reduce the European bloc’s dependence on Russian energy, the intense relations between these states with Moscow “make this partnership challenging”, the special representative said . A request that is of great interest to the six partner states is visa liberalization. Currently, no short-stay EU visas are required for UAE citizens, while those from other Gulf nations must obtain a visa valid for five years. The conclusions are expected on the evening of October 16th after a working dinner and could influence the October 17th summit between EU heads of government.
