EPISODE · May 18, 2026 · 13 MIN
Gulf states’ differences were baked into the GCC’s DNA from the outset
from The Turbulent World with James M. Dorsey · host James M. Dorsey
The Gulf states’ divergent responses to the Iran war are part of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)’s DNA. Founded in Abu Dhabi in 1981 by the region’s six monarchies, the GCC aimed to be a hub for military coordination, intelligence sharing, and economic integration in response to the 1979 anti-monarchical Islamic revolution in Iran. The monarchies established the GCC on the back of their support for the 1980 Iraqi invasion of revolutionary Iran to the tune of US$60 billion. The GCC’s creation also followed the Shah of Iran’s seizure a decade earlier of three islands at the mouth of the Strait of Hormuz, which the United Arab Emirates claimed as it declared its independence in the wake of Britain’s withdrawal from the region. The GCC has come a long way since its early days, when Emirati merchant families feared that they would be marginalised by their Saudi and Kuwaiti competitors who were wealthier, more powerful, and more numerous, even if the rivalry has more recently become fiercer and more pronounced as a result of diametrically opposed regional policies and the Iran war.
What this episode covers
The Gulf states’ divergent responses to the Iran war are part of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)’s DNA. Founded in Abu Dhabi in 1981 by the region’s six monarchies, the GCC aimed to be a hub for military coordination, intelligence sharing, and economic integration in response to the 1979 anti-monarchical Islamic revolution in Iran. The monarchies established the GCC on the back of their support for the 1980 Iraqi invasion of revolutionary Iran to the tune of US$60 billion. The GCC’s creation also followed the Shah of Iran’s seizure a decade earlier of three islands at the mouth of the Strait of Hormuz, which the United Arab Emirates claimed as it declared its independence in the wake of Britain’s withdrawal from the region. The GCC has come a long way since its early days, when Emirati merchant families feared that they would be marginalised by their Saudi and Kuwaiti competitors who were wealthier, more powerful, and more numerous, even if the rivalry has more recently become fiercer and more pronounced as a result of diametrically opposed regional policies and the Iran war.
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Gulf states’ differences were baked into the GCC’s DNA from the outset
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