European Journal of Scientific Research (ISSN: 1450 ... - EuroJournals

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26 © European Journal of Scientific Research, Vol 7, No 5, 2005 Council in 1989 agreed to establish a new Court of First Instance (CFI) to relieve the ECJ of its more trivial decisions. Other important EU institutions are the Court of Auditors, the Economic and Social Committee, and the European Investment Bank. (Middlemas, 1995). SUCCESSES, PROBLEMS AND CHALLENGES The EU is widely regarded as ,the model for regional economic integration. The EU's success in establishing a customs union and removing internal trade barriers has brought significant economic benefit to both the individual member states and to the EU as a whole. Today, the EU ranks as the largest trader among all WTO members and as such, can rightly be viewed as a 'global economic power' (Pelkmanas and Carzaniga, 1996). While the EU is advancing in the aspects of economic integration, it has frequently stalled on political and social integration decisions on a common foreign policy have proved particularly problematic. In facing its future, the EU will need to deal with both philosophical / political challenges and divisions between the states. The first challenge relates to the reluctance of the Member States to surrender their national sovereignty to the supranational organization of the EV. The second challenge relates to major demographic, geographical, political, and economic differences between Members. The population gap between the largest state _ Germany before unification, and the smallest state, Luxembourg - was more than 60 million. Despite the fact that the voting of French and the Dutch against the European Constitution may constitute a challenge to European integration, I believe these challenges are minimal considering the successes EU has encountered. THE GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL In February 1981, the foreign ministers of the VAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman arid Saudi Arabia met in; Riyadh and unanimously agreed on the creation of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) which aimed at fostering "cooperation and coordination among the six member states in all walks of life" (Furtig, 2004). The GCC Constitution establishes the "ultimate aim" of creating a confederal union amongst the six states and set the specific shorter-term (by the end of the 1980s) of establishing a customs union and forum for economic coordination. Thus, in its initial objectives, the GCC appears to be remarkably similar to the EU (as originally structured in the Treaty of Rome). There are also distinct parallels in the .way that the GCC states chose to focus on economic objectives as a means to achieve political and defense aims. On the other hand, if we examine the history and structure of the GCC, we see that it contrasts sharply with that of the EU. One critical contrast,' which should be made clear at the outset of this comparison, is the relative homogeneity of the GCC member states versus those in the European Union. While the twenty five members of the EU must cope with different languages, different religions, different demographic structures, and divisions 'based on economics and social systems, the six GCC members enjoy a broad range of similarities. Among the GCC members there is a common language - Arabic, a common religion - Islam, dominated by a single sect - Sunni, cornparable social structures (including demographics), very similar
© European Journal of Scientific Research, Vol 7, No 5, 2005 systems of government, very similar standards of economic development, a collective culture, and a shared geography. Another crucial structural contrast between the EU and the GCC involves their respective sizes and relative share in the world economy. The EU encompasses a population of some 370 million - the combined population of the six GCC states is estimated at 35 million, or less than one tenth the size of the EU. And while the GCC states are extremely wealthy compared to global averages, and although the GCC states are the economic linchpin of the global energy trade, the gap between their combined GDP and that of the EU's is quite large. (Middlemas, 1995). Thus, while the GCC is a vital union within the larger Arab and Middle Eastern region, and although GCC integration can (and does) certainly work to promote both the economic development of member states and the overall, role of the GCC within the global system, it is unlikely that - barring extensive expansion – the GCC's importance in the global economic system will ever approach the magnitude of the EU's impact. Yet another important distinction between the two groups concerns structural differences between the member states of the two groups. One significant difference is economic. Although the Gulf States have reduced their oil dependence during the past few years; their economies are still largely oil - based, with at least one-third of GDP in each state (Bahrain and UAE, which now relies' on tourism and business, are exceptions) originating from the energy sector. This is a marked contrast with the largely service- based, highly diversified developed economies of the EU member states. (Holms and Jenkins, 1996). While the diversification and sectoral differences among the EU member states promotes complementary trading, the relative economic homogeneity and energy-dependence of the GCC states limits the economic potential for complete economic integration. The economic homogeneity of the Gulf States also impacts trading patterns among the member states. Another significant structural difference in the member states of the two regional organizations is political / philosophical. For the most part the EU members share a commitment to democratic (including social-democratic) forms of governments. This bias is reflected in the multi-level institutional framework of the EU, which encompasses principles of balance of power and shared decision-making responsibilities. The GCC countries, on the other hand, very considerably in their political traditions; some governments still lacking democratic institutions and traditions. A more comprehensive understanding of the similarities and differences between the EU and the GCC will be clear through an examination of the history and structure of the GCC. The prospect for cooperation between the six Gulf States was rendered possible by the withdrawal of the British from the region and the perceived threat of either Soviet or U.S. military intervention. However, even before the British withdrawal, there was evidence that the Gulf states perceived the value of cooperation. For example, in 1953 - eight years before it achieved full independence Kuwait pioneered regional resource-sharing activities by creating the General Board of the South and Arab Gulf to provide cultural, scientific and health services to the nine lower Gulf Emirates (which, like, Kuwait, were then part of the British Empire) (Anthony, 1988). There were a number of efforts at cooperation during the: 1970s. In 1976, the foreign ministers of Iran, lraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Oman met in Muscat to discuss the Omani suggestion to develop a common regional security and defense policy. While this 27
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