Gulf countries mark 20 years of NATO partnership: Looking back, moving forward

Stoltenberg and GCC officials at the ICI-NATO 2oth anniversary ceremony (NATO)

By Habib Toumi

NEW YORK: Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the four member countries of the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative (ICI) partnership with NATO have celebrated 20 years of the initiative.

An event hosted by the Crown Prince of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al Sabah, on the sideline of the UN General Assembly in New York, brought together the four NATO’s four ICI partners as well as Saudi Arabia, Oman, the other two members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the GCC Secretary General and NATO senior officials.

The GCC, founded in 1981, comprises Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. It is arguably the most effective regional cooperation organization in the Arab world.

Four of the six GCC countries have joined the ICI launched by NATO in 2004 to “contribute to long-term global and regional security by offering GCC countries practical bilateral security cooperation with NATO.”

Kuwait joined the ICI in December 2004, followed by Bahrain and Qatar in February 2005 and the UAE in June 2005.

In 2017, NATO opened its first ICI Regional Centre in Kuwait during a high-profile ceremony attended by Stoltenberg.

Stoltenberg, Kuwait Crown Prince at the ceremony (NATO)

At the anniversary event in New York, Stoltenberg called for stronger, more strategic and results-orientated partnerships with countries in the Gulf region.

Stoltenberg reaffirmed the importance of the NATO-ICI partnership as a platform for cooperation, highlighting its evolution and achievements.

The Secretary General underlined areas of close cooperation between NATO and the ICI partners – including cyber defence, security sector reform, climate change, energy security, maritime security, and the protection of critical infrastructure.

“During these two decades, our cooperation has grown from strength to strength,” he said, praising the Gulf partners’ contributions and participation.

Stoltenberg emphasized that, when faced with “a deeply deteriorated security environment, we see more than ever that our security is not regional, but global,” closer cooperation with partners in the Gulf and wider Middle East region is a necessary step.

He outlined the decisions taken by Allies at the Washington Summit in July 2024 to increase NATO’s engagement in the Middle East, North Africa and the Sahel.

Referring to Javier Colomina’s appointment as the new Special Representative for the Southern Neighbourhood, the Secretary General stated that it is “the first time the Alliance has a dedicated focal point for this work”.”

He also referred to the upcoming opening of the NATO Liaison Office in Jordan, the broadened scope of the training mission in Iraq, the NATO-Istanbul Cooperation Initiative Regional Centre in Kuwait and the Hub for the South in Naples, which provide “an even stronger basis on which to take our partnerships forward.”

Stoltenberg addressing the ICI-NATO 2oth anniversary ceremony (NATO)

The ICI was launched in 2004 and provides a partnership forum for practical cooperation and political dialogue between NATO and partner countries in the Gulf region.

The NATO-Istanbul Cooperation Initiative Regional Center in Kuwait (NIRC) was opened in 2017 and helps strengthen political dialogue, education and training, and public diplomacy.

The center was inaugurated in 2017 by Secretary General Stoltenberg, marking NATO’s first such presence in the Gulf region.