The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries will hold joint military drills called Peninsula Shield in the United Arab Emirates in 2026, GCC Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi said on Sunday.
“The Gulf countries strengthened their military cooperation in 2024 by holding a series of joint military drills and look forward to holding the Peninsula Shield joint drills in the UAE during 2026, which will be the result of the joint military cooperation process,” he said at a summit of the heads of six GCC monarchies.
GCC member countries are Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE. Joint military drills of the armies of the six countries were held regularly until 2017, when Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain declared a boycott of Qatar for four and a half years and imposed a blockade around it.
