European Council President Antonio Costa called for a “deeper and stronger” engagement between the 27-member bloc and the Gulf states as he concluded his tour of Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar in Doha on Wednesday, “at a critical moment in the context of a fragile ceasefire and unjustifiable attacks by Iran.”
The UAE and Qatar have repeatedly hailed the EU’s role in defending and supporting the Gulf during Iran’s onslaught, with Qatar saying, “this is the time when you know who your friends are”.