EU-Gulf Cooperation Council Urges "Immediate Ceasefire in Middle East"

The European Union, the EU, the Gulf Cooperation Council and the GCC all called for an "immediate and complete ceasefire" of the Middle East conflict on the 16th local time.

The two organizations made the remarks in a joint statement adopted at their first summit in Brussels, Belgium.

The two sides also stressed the need to respect international law and international humanitarian law.

The two sides differed on the issue of the war in Ukraine.

The EU insisted that the joint statement should include high-level phrases aimed at Russia, including a call to stop supplying weapons to Russia, but the GCC opposed it.

In the end, the joint statement stopped short of including the words of a UN Security Council resolution saying, "We must condemn Russia's invasion and immediately withdraw from Ukrainian territory without conditions."

The two sides also agreed to strengthen cooperation in areas such as trade, energy and climate change.

The two sides began negotiations on a free trade agreement 35 years ago, but it has been virtually suspended since 2008.

The summit was attended by most of the leaders of the EU, including Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Summit President Charles Michel.

The GCC was attended by Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman, as well as top officials from six GCC countries, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).