The European Parliament praised on Wednesday the socio-economic transformation in Saudi Arabia and called for closer cooperation between the European Union and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Chair of the European Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs David McAllister stated: "I am impressed by the range and scale of the societal changes that Saudi Arabia has experienced since the last time a foreign affairs committee parliamentary delegation visited the Kingdom, in particular as regards the role of women in society, in public administration and in the economy." He made the statement following the visit of EP delegation, led by McAllister, to Riyadh on Monday and Tuesday. "This week's visit to Saudi Arabia is part of our effort to reach out to a key partner in the Middle East region," said the German MEP, thanking Saudi for its support of the UN General Assembly resolutions of March 2 and October 12 on the Russian military operation in Ukraine and on the illegal annexation of Ukrainian territories. The EP delegation visit followed the publication in May of an EU document on 'Strategic Partnership with the Gulf'. While welcoming the new EU-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) alignment, MEPs shared with the Saudi and the GCC leadership their support for initiatives fostering Gulf unity and stability. They discussed ways to improve and develop the cooperation with both Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council, especially global and regional stability, but also on energy and food security, the green transition, economic diversification and human rights, read the statement. The EP delegation met a number of top Saudi government officials and parliamentarians including the Shoura Council representatives. The EP delegation also met Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, Walid Al-Khureiji, and the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Climate Envoy Adel Al-Jubeir, and discussed the urgent need for political stabilization in the region and the importance of addressing Iranian influence and its destabilizing activities through its proxies in the region and beyond. Furthermore, the potential of a free trade agreement and of a reciprocal visa waiver scheme, as well as the recent Saudi Arabia-China and GCC-China summits were also discussed. — Agencies
