EU and Gulf leaders meet for first summit against background of Mideast turmoil

BRUSSELS -- The leaders of the European Union and six Gulf nations are meeting in an inaugural summit on Wednesday against a backdrop of turmoil in the Middle East and struggles to find a unified position on the war in Ukraine.

The summit is expected to last just a few hours and encompass everything from visas and trade to the situation in the Middle East, and is unlikely to yield more than general commitments to improve cooperation.

“Our message is clear: we are ready to act more and more together in facing common challenges,” said EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell on the eve of the meeting.

The 27-nation EU has long had relations with the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, which include Qatar, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait.

The nations of the European Union already find it challenging to find full alignment on Israel's wars against Hamas and Hezbollah, and it will be difficult to find a strong common statement with GCC leaders, officials familiar with the meeting said.

EU members are also in disagreement regarding relations with Russia and Ukraine, with nations like Hungary and Slovakia holding vastly different views on Moscow's actions than much of the other EU states. At the same time, several GCC nations have much better contact with Moscow compared to EU members.