Gulf Cooperation Council and EU discuss joint meeting of foreign ministers

Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Jamil Hujailan met Tuesday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with a European Union (EU) diplomat to prepare for a meeting of the GCC and EU foreign ministers, the Chinese news agency Xinhua said.

Hujailan discussed with Austria's charge d'affaires in Riyadh, Frederic Stivet, whose country is holding the rotating EU presidency, the needed steps to establish a common free trade zone and boost bilateral commercial ties.

Those issues are expected to dominate the two-day meeting of foreign ministers of the GCC and EU due to be held in Luxembourg on October 26.

The meeting would cover a host of regional and international affairs, including the deadlocked Middle East peace process and the EU's role in pressing Israel to honor all the agreements it signed with the Arabs, Map reported.

The GCC is made up of Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.