His Excellency Mr Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi, Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), stated that the Ministerial Council of the Cooperation Council discussed developments in the region during its 48th extraordinary meeting held today, Monday, June 16, 2025, via video conference.
Chaired by His Excellency Mr Abdullah Al Yahya, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Kuwait and Chairman of the current session of the Ministerial Council, the meeting was attended by Their Highnesses and Excellencies the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the GCC member states.
During his speech in the meeting, His Excellency the GCC Secretary General said that the region has witnessed a highly dangerous and unprecedented escalation in recent days due to attacks by the Israeli occupation forces on the territory of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the response from Iran.
"This has exacerbated tensions in the region and opened the door to vague and worrying scenarios, undermining opportunities for political tracks and leading to the cessation and collapse of dialogue and diplomacy efforts, which prompted all GCC countries to condemn the Israeli military operations at the time," His Excellency stressed.
His Excellency Mr Albudaiwi highlighted a number of repercussions and challenges that the GCC countries may face as a result of these rapid developments, including the consequences of any escalation that may affect nuclear facilities, given its potential effects on the regional environment and vital infrastructure, in addition to the extension of these effects to the economic aspects. This includes the possibility of disrupting supply chains and the movement of trade and energy, as well as threatening the safety of vital waterways.
Given these critical circumstances and the potentially serious technical and environmental repercussions of any targeting of nuclear facilities, His Excellency stated that the General Secretariat of the Cooperation Council, in immediate response to the gravity of the situation and in direct implementation of the Supreme Council's directives to strengthen emergency response systems, has activated the GCC Emergency Management Centre.
"This activation ensures all necessary preventive measures are taken at environmental and radiological levels, while technical indicators are closely monitored in full coordination with member states' authorities via early warning systems, and technical reports and related data are promptly issued and published. The first statement to the media has already been released," His Excellency explained.
In the same context, he reassured that technical indicators remain within the safe range, and no cause for concern has been observed. However, a state of full alert is maintained to ensure the highest levels of readiness and continuous vigilance.
His Excellency concluded his speech by emphasising that the Cooperation Council was founded on the values of solidarity and collective action, and has always seen stability as a fundamental pillar of the security and interests of its peoples. He affirmed its ongoing commitment to de-escalate tensions, foster dialogue, and proactively prevent conflicts that could destabilise the Gulf and the world.
"From this platform, we renew our call to all countries and parties to exercise restraint and refrain from any military actions, in order to avoid a dangerous slide towards a wider conflict whose consequences cannot be predicted or controlled," His Excellency stated.
