The gulf co-operation advice (English Gulf Cooperation Council, GCC) (Arab: became to 25. May 1981 in Abu Dhabi by Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, combined Arab emirates and Oman based. Yemen requested the membership in the GCC.

A goal of the organization is to be promoted co-operation to the outside and security politics as well as the economic and social relations between the members, to which 1982 were liberalisiert in the context of the Unified Economic Agreement the goods traffic. For 2005 a customs union was decided, which was finally preferred on the year 2003. Until 2010 a common currency is planned. Different political goals and a number of separating questions obstruct however the integration efforts.

The members are obligated to mutual assistance in the case of defense. The GCC maintains a common defense troop, which covers however only 5,000 men. Therefore had to cooperate the GCC closely with the USA, in order to be protected from the Iraq rigged by the USA and Iran.

For the European union is the GCC region of strategic importance. The GCC is the most important trade partner of the union in the Arab world. To it about half of the entire trade with the Arab states and about 4 per cent of the total exports of the European union were allotted into third countries.

Organs

The seat of the organization is in Riyadh. When highest committee of the organization meets twice annually the highest advice (supreme Council), in which the state and head of the government of the member states are represented. Beyond that there is a committee for economic co-operation (Economic Cooperation Committee), in which regularly the Ministers of Finance of the member states meet.

For the preparation of the monetary union a committee of the monetary authorities and the central bank governors (Committee OF Monetary Agencies and cent ral bank Governors) was educated, in which current asking of the money and monetary policy are discussed.

Monetary union

The objective to establish until 2010 a monetary union is embedded into a general economic process of integration. The first formulation of the goal took place already 1982. Concrete steps for this were only accomplished starting from the year 2000, when the highest advice authorized the money committee and the group of the Ministers of Finance to compile a schedule for the introduction of a common currency.

In the spring 2001 the two latter organs decided to use a working group which should prepare the requirements for the establishment of a monetary union. First results were presented when meeting the state and heads of the government in Muskat (December 2001). The highest advice agreed there on the following procedure:

1. To end 2002 all national currencies should be coupled to the US Dollar.
2. Until at the end of of 2005 is to agree the monetary committee with the Ministers of Finance on convergence criteria for the entry of a member state to the monetary union.
3. Between 2005 and 2010 the criteria are to be fulfilled by the states willing to join.
4. To the turn of the year 2009/2010 the new currency is to be introduced.

Compared to other monetary integration efforts is the project of the GCC ambitionierteste and furthest advanced. The prospects for the monetary union appear good - both material and monetary convergence far and contrary to other integration areas (for example the Mercosur) the put goals progressed so far were also reached.

On its economic meaning the gulf currency area the secondarymost important supranational currency integration would be based after the euro area.

Literature

• Brown, Ursula: The co-operation advice of Arab states at the gulf - a new ISBN 3-7890-1290-4
• Rinawi, Nadia; Housework the gulf co-operation advice (2002), attainable under web page
• Sandwick, John A.: The Gulf Cooperation Council. American Arab Affaires Council, Westview press (1987)
• Storm, Michael; Siegfried, Nikolaus (2005): Regionally Monetary integration into the Member States OF the Gulf Cooperation Council, ECB Occasional PAPER Series, No. 31

Related links

• Cooperation Council for the Arab States OF the Gulf Secretariat general
• English translation of the Charter
• GCC trade Exchange
• The Cooperation Council for the Arab States OF the Gulf's flag

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