KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah is scheduled to depart Kuwait today to Saudi Arabia to head the State of Kuwait's delegation participating in the 41st GCC Summit. His Highness the Amir had received at Bayan Palace yesterday His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. His Highness the Amir also received National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanem and His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah.

His Highness the Amir received as well Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Sheikh Hamad Jaber Al-Ali Al-Sabah, and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Anas Al-Saleh. In the meantime, His Highness the Crown Prince received Speaker Ghanem and His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled at Bayan Palace. His Highness Sheikh Mishal also received Sheikh Hamad Jaber Al-Ali, Saleh, Foreign Minister Sheikh Dr Ahmad Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah and Interior Minister Sheikh Thamer Ali Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah.

Enhancing cooperation
The Gulf Cooperation Council's (GCC) 41st Summit kicks off today at the invitation of the Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud with the participation of the member states' leaders. The summit is hosted in the historic city of Al-Ula in northwest Saudi Arabia amid the exceptional circumstances due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which reflects the keenness of the Gulf leaders to continue coordination and cooperation under the umbrella of this interconnected system.

On Sunday, the GCC Secretary-General Dr Nayef Al-Hajraf pointed out that the economic file will be the title of the fifth decade of the GCC's march by strengthening and supporting joint action to contribute to restoring economic recovery, restoring growth and returning to normalcy after the pandemic and achieving sustainable development goals. Saudi Arabia is hosting the GCC Summit for a third consecutive year.

The GCC leaders are scheduled to discuss a number of important issues to enhance the process of cooperation and integration among the member states in political, defense, security, economic and social fields, in addition to discussing regional and international political developments and the reflection of the security situation in the region on the six GCC states.

Chronology
The first summit was held in Abu Dhabi in May 1981. The Emirati capital also held the summit in 1986, 1992, 1998, 2005 and 2010. Riyadh hosted the summit in 1981, 1987, 1993, 1999, 2006, 2011, 2015, 2018 and 2019. The Qatari capital, Doha, hosted the summit in 1983, 1990, 1996, 2002, 2007 and 2014. Kuwait hosted the summit seven times; in 1984, 1991, 1997, 2003, 2009, 2013, and 2017.

The GCC summit was held in the Bahraini capital, Manama, in 1982, 1988, 1994, 2000, 2004, 2012 and 2016. Oman's Muscat hosted the summit in 1985, 1989, 1995, 2001 and 2008. The GCC is a regional intergovernmental political and economic union consisting of all Arab states of the Arabian Gulf - Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. - KUNA