Gulf Countries – EC Library Guide on Country Knowledge

Selected publications

Selected EU publications

Atlas of migration 2024

European Commission: Joint Research Centre, Bongiardo, D., Chiaramello, D., Dara, A., Cortinovis, R. et al., Atlas of migration 2024, Bongiardo, D.(editor), Dara, A.(editor), Crespi, I.(editor) and Sofos, I.(editor), Publications Office of the European Union, 2024.

The Atlas of Migration is more than just a publication—it is a testament to the power of data and rigorous analysis in illuminating the multifaceted nature of migratory movements. The 2024 edition of the Atlas continues to serve as a vital tool for policymakers, researchers and the public at large, offering a wealth of data to cut through the confusion and misinformation that often surrounds the discourse on migration. The Atlas provides the latest harmonised and validated data on migration for the 27 EU Member States and for 171 countries and territories around the world. It brings together data from many reliable sources, such as Eurostat, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs, the World Bank and many others. This year’s thematic chapter of the Atlas delves into the nuanced motivations behind migration, moving beyond simplified narratives in favour of a more comprehensive view that acknowledges the diverse and often overlapping reasons that propel individuals to move.
Can Europe choreograph a Saudi-Iranian détente?

European University Institute, C. Bianco. European University Institute, 2021

Geopolitical rivalries between the two shores of the Gulf are having a detrimental impact on the stability of the wider Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. European interests, such as the security of land and maritime routes, the rescue of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) – a.k.a. the Iranian nuclear deal - and, crucially, the stabilisation of several regional crises – notably in Yemen, Iraq, Lebanon and the Horn of Africa – are severely affected. For this reason, working towards de-escalation in the Gulf has featured prominently of late in the foreign policy strategies of several European countries, including the European Union.The EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, received a specific mandate for mediating a dialogue on Gulf security in 2020.

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The election of Joe Biden as president of the United States (US) provided a momentum to push this forward. Under Biden, the US intends to return to the JCPOA and promote follow-on talks on regional security between the two shores of the Gulf. While nuclear diplomacy should not be directly tied to regional security talks, the only way to make a return to the JCPOA sustainable would be to keep regional players constructively engaged by meaningfully addressing their related threats perceptions. Europeans should not wait for the US to lead on this front. Instead, there should be an acknowledgement that the Biden administration will be pushing ahead with plans for American retrenchment from the MENA region and will be absorbed by the JCPOA question as well as by domestic matters. The EU and individual European players should work in coordinated core groups, promoting confidence-building measures among the parties and encouraging them to explore ways to convert the principles of good neighbourliness into concrete geopolitical moves addressing core security issues. To do that, core groups should act under a single European umbrella, making Europe a geopolitical and security player.
Corporate code list of countries and territories | Publications Office of the European Union

In order to address the diversity of country and territory codes and names used in the EU institutions, the European Commission has developed a corporate code list of countries and territories that covers the different use cases its services have.
EU-GCC relations: How to forge a stronger partnership?

European Union Institute for Security Studies, B. Al-Saif, D.Ghanem. Publications Office of the European Union, 2023

The EU and the GCC have a long-standing partnership. However their relations have been hampered by institutional differences, contrasting values and priorities, and conflicting interests. Both the EU and GCC need to invest more effort in understanding each other’s institutional structures, internal dynamics, and the evolving identities of individual member states. To strengthen the EU-GCC partnership, the two blocs need to pursue a less ambitious approach and adopt a targeted strategy focused on specific sectors, fast-tracking bureaucratic processes to maximise efficiency.
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Exploring carbon market instruments for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA)

European University Institute, J. Delbeke, R. Lamas. European University Institute, 2021.

As more and more countries prepare net-zero pledges under the Paris Agreement, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has a specific concept: the Circular Carbon Economy (CCE), targeting carbon circularity by building a competitive advantage on clean hydrogen and carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS) technologies. The concept is nationally endorsed and the next steps now need to be elaborated. How best should technological and financial efforts be designed? This policy brief analyses the different elements of a potential carbon market for KSA, considering the country’s economic and competitive strengths, its plans to diversify its economy, and calls for a long-term low-carbon strategy for the country.
The food and beverage market entry handbook – Saudi Arabia

European Commission: European Research Executive Agency. Publications Office of the European Union, 2023.

This handbook is intended to act as a reference for those agri-food producers planning for, or in the process of entering, the Saudi Arabian market. It provides step-by-step guides on entering the agri-food market in Saudi Arabia including relevant information such as analysis of the Saudi Arabian market for different product categories, market access and market entry procedures, IP protection, referrals to professional buyers and signposting and referral system providing useful contacts and ways to penetrate the Saudi Arabian market.
Stepping away from the abyss – A gradual approach towards a new security system in the Persian Gulf

European University Institute, L. Narbone, A. Divsallar. European University Institute, 2021.

A series of incidents have pushed the Persian Gulf region to the brink of war in recent years. In 2019, drones were used to attack Saudi Aramco facilities at Abqaiq and Khurais in eastern Saudi Arabia. Although the Yemeni Houthi movement claimed responsibility for the attack, Saudi Arabian officials accused Iran of being behind it. In January 2020, the assassination of the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds force, Qasem Soleimani, by a US drone strike sharply escalated tensions in the region. Tehran vowed revenge and Iranian missiles landed on US bases in Iraq. While tension remained high throughout 2020, actors exerted restraint and escalatory pushes were contained. The US withdrawal from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and pursuit of a ‘maximum pressure strategy’ between 2017 and 2020 had ignited the escalation.

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The US pressure resulted in the closure of diplomatic channels and in Iran increasingly relying on brinkmanship policies, as was the case of 2019 strikes on oil tankers in the Persian Gulf. Iran also threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz, which, given the importance of the strait to international oil supply, would have elevated the confrontation to a higher international level. In turn, the US has increased its naval presence in the Persian Gulf, making the risk of collision with the Iranian navy higher.3 Although escalatory dynamics and inadvertent incidents have been reduced during the first months of the Biden presidency, the danger of war in the Persian Gulf remains high. The instability deriving from the confrontational security system in the Persian Gulf goes well beyond the geographical sub-region. Conflicts in Yemen, Syria and Libya have evolved into regional and international battlefields, with Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Iran having played key roles in supporting non-state actors and taking advantage of opportunities to project influence. Through these actions, Middle Eastern conflicts have become intertwined with the security dynamics of the Gulf region and a deteriorating Saudi-Iran relationship, US-Iran tensions and Saudi-UAE-Turkish competitions have become decisive fault lines. The geographical spread of Gulf politics to MENA and also to regions like the Red Sea and the Horn of Africa have fuelled sectarian identity politics, accelerated arms buildups and threatened Western security interests. While all the countries in the Gulf are wary of the catastrophic consequences that a war in the sub-region could have, they appear trapped in a highly risky vicious cycle of mutual suspicion, inflammatory rhetoric and tit-for-tat actions. These developments point to the urgency of setting up working regional security capable of managing these risks.
What are the consequences for middle powers, such as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, of a multi-order future?

European University Institute, J. Giorgio. European University Institute, 2024.

The essay will start by analysing the evolution of the relationship between Saudi Arabia and the US amidst the change going on In the liberal international order, introducing the concept of liberal intrusiveness. It will then explain why a space for contesting the liberal intrusiveness opened for Saudi Arabia, by looking at the growing relationship with Beijing. Ultimately, it will draw some conclusions on the consequences of the changing international order towards a multi-order future for middle powers such as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.