The Gulf Cooperation Council : a study in integration

Al Makhawi, RA

Abstract

The Gulf Cooperation Council was established in May
1981 by the heads of state of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar,
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. At the time,
Western observers declared security to be the prime
consideration of its founders, yet security is not
mentioned in the Council's foundation charter. This
emphasizes the intention to promote "close coordination in
all spheres, especially the economic and social" between
the member states; throughout the charter the terms
"coordination", "integration", " cooperation", "closer
relations" and "ties" repeatedly recur. In consequence, as
the Council began to make its existence felt in the
international community, its activity raised the question
as to whether this demonstrated the development of
integration as understood in the West notwithstanding
references in the preamble to the charter to concepts of
Islamic and Arab unity which predate Western theories of
integration.
Accordingly, this study looks at the Gulf Cooperation
Council in the light of theories of integration initially
elaborated in the light of Western experience in order to
establish whether the Council in fact constitutes a fresh
attempt to promote Arab unity. It concludes that analysis
of its achievements establishes the Council as a cautious
and pragmatic instrument to the achievement of Arab unity
while at the same time reflecting favourably on Western
theories of integration based on the concept of the
security community.

Citation

Al Makhawi, R. The Gulf Cooperation Council : a study in integration. (Thesis). University of Salford

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Sep 23, 2011
• Publicly Available Date: Sep 23, 2011
• Award Date: Jan 1, 1990