Gulf leaders will meet in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday for the first time in person since the war on Iran began at the end of February.
The exceptional meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council in Jeddah is aimed at crafting a response to Iranian missile and drone attacks, a Gulf official told Reuters.
The war, which began after the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran, has seen key infratructure in all six GCC states hit, with US-linked firms and military bases targeted.
Attacks have subsided since the US and Iran entered a ceasefire on 8 April, but talks are inconclusive and Gulf kingdoms remain wary.
Qatar’s emir, Kuwait’s crown prince, Bahrain’s king and the United Arab Emirates’ foreign minister arrived in Jeddah to attend the summit, Saudi state media reported. It was unclear who would represent Oman, the remaining member of the GCC along with Saudi Arabia, which hosts the council’s headquarters.
The GCC has faced some criticism from the UAE.
“It is true that, logistically, the GCC countries supported each other, but politically and militarily, I think their position was the weakest in history,” senior UAE official Anwar Gargash told a conference in the UAE on Monday.
“I expected such a weak position from the Arab League, and I am not surprised by it, but I have not expected it from the GCC, and I am surprised by it.”