Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud chaired the first meeting of the Saudi-Emirati Coordination Council in Jeddah on 6 June.

The bilateral organisation seeks to beef up the global sovereign standings of the two countries while working in line with the objectives set by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). It will do this by promoting cooperation on the economy, human development, and political, security and military integration, as well as ensuring general welfare.

The council's organisational structure was also affirmed during the meeting with 16 ministers from both countries. The councils members are:

UAE

• Mohammad bin Abdullah al-Gergawi, minister of cabinet affairs & the future
• Sultan bin Saeed al-Mansouri, minister of economy
• Anwar bin Mohammed Gargash, minister of state for foreign affairs
• Obaid bin Humaid al-Tayer, minister of state for financial affairs
• Hussain bin Ibrahim al-Hammadi, minister of education
• Sultan bin Ahmad Sultan al-Jaber, minister of state
• Ali bin Hammad al-Shamsi, deputy secretary-general of the Supreme National Security Council

Saudi Arabia

• Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Nayef, minister of interior
• Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Farhan al-Saud, minister of culture
• Mohammed al-Tuwaijri, minister of economy & planning
• Majid bin Abdullah al-Qasabi, minister of commerce & investment
• Adel bin Ahmed al-Jubair, minister of foreign affairs
• Khalid bin Abdulaziz al-Falih, minister of energy, industry & mineral resources
• Ahmed bin Aqeel al-Khatib, board chairman of the General Entertainment Authority
• Mohammed al-Jadaan, minister of finance
• Yasir bin Othman al-Rumayyan, chief executive and secretary-general of the board at the Public Investment Fund

An executive committee under the chairmanship of Mohammad bin Abdullah al-Gergawi and Mohammed al-Tuwaijri has also been formed to accelerate cooperation and follow up on the progress of work.

Abu Dhabi said in December last year that a joint cooperation committee had been formed by the UAE and Saudi Arabia to coordinate on a variety of issues, including all military, political, economic, trade and cultural fields.