Inside Story

Can the Gulf Cooperation Council survive?

The blockade of Qatar, the war in Yemen, and a journalist’s murder overshadowed the GCC summit in Riyadh.

Leaders and officials from six Gulf nations met in the Saudi capital to discuss cooperation – from the economy to security – but it was regional disunity that dominated the summit.

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman did not mention the blockade of Qatar by his country and two other GCC member states.

But it’s that dispute, the war in Yemen, and the diplomatic crisis surrounding the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi that overshadowed the event.

So, what does the future hold for the GCC?

Presenter: Adrian Finighan

Guests:

Marwan Kabalan – director of policy analysis at the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies

Abdullah Al Shayji – professor of political science at Kuwait University

Mostafa Khoshcheshm – journalist and political commentator