BRUSSELS: Avoiding a “general conflagration” in the Middle East will be top of the agenda when European Union and Gulf leaders meet in Brussels this week, European officials said on Tuesday.
Heads of state and government from six Gulf countries — Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE - are expected to attend the first summit on Wednesday with their EU counterparts in the Belgian capital.
Trade, energy and climate change are among issues on the table.
But Israel’s conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon, and the risk of a broader regional war are expected to be “the main topic”, EU officials said.
“One of the objectives is to avoid a general conflagration,” one official said. “Both sides are worried about this.”
The 27-nation EU is seeking to foster closer ties with countries from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
The EU is the second-largest trading partner for GCC countries but talks on a trade pact have languished for years and differences also remain on other subjects, including the war in Ukraine.
“We see much more eye-to-eye on the Middle East,” another official said.
“We want - both the EU and the GCC - stability in the region, de-escalation.”
EU urges ceasefires
The talks come amid escalating Israeli attacks it says are targeting Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.
Hezbollah had been exchanging cross-border fire with Israel for almost a year, saying it is acting in response to Israel’s devastating ground and air assault on Gaza.
The war in Gaza began after the armed wing of Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise attack from the territory into Israel on October 7, 2023.
The near-daily exchange of fire across the Israel-Lebanon border led to the displacement of tens of thousands of people on both sides even before the dramatic escalation last month, when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to crush Hezbollah.
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and top EU diplomat Josep Borrell will participate in the EU-GCC meeting, along with the heads of the EU’s 27 nations, ahead of a European Union leaders’ summit on Thursday.
It was not clear which GCC leaders will travel to Brussels but EU officials said the Gulf countries would be represented by their heads of state or government.
The EU has called for a ceasefire in Lebanon and Gaza.
