Views of the Gulf Cooperation Council among Qatari and Other Gulf Nationals

Abstract

Here we examine the orientations of Qatari citizens toward the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) as revealed in a pan-GCC survey conducted in 2016. We assess general attitudes toward the Council as an institution, toward recent GCC regional initiatives and interventions, and toward the larger ongoing process of Gulf regional integration. We also compare Qataris’ views to those of other GCC citizens, and investigate the individual-level determinants of citizen attitudes in a multivariate model. Overall, the results show that Qataris are very positively oriented toward the GCC and toward the idea of regional integration—more so than other Gulf nationals surveyed. Yet, unexpectedly perhaps, support for the GCC is highest among younger, less educated, less affluent, more religious, and more politically efficacious citizens, posing interesting questions about the individual motivations of support for the Council and for closer integration among the Arab Gulf states.