Riyadh, February 08, 2023, SPA -- Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Jassem Mohamed Albudaiwi, met today with the Ambassador of the United Kingdom (UK) to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Neil Crompton. At the outset of the meeting, Crompton underlined the keenness of the UK to cement a partnership with the GCC countries in all fields. During the meeting, the officials addressed the latest issues at regional and international levels. The GCC Secretary General underscored the importance the GCC attaches to the strategic partnership with the UK, which was announced at the joint summit held in the Kingdom of Bahrain in December 2016, the implementation of the joint action plan, the summit’s decisions, including political dialogue, cooperation in the fields of security and defense, the economic and cultural sectors and the progress of the negotiations of the Free Trade Agreement between the Council and the UK, launched in light of the joint statement signed on June 22, 2022. Both sides are looking forward to the success of the third round of negotiations, which will be hosted by Riyadh in mid-March 2023. The meeting was attended by the Assistant Secretary for Political Affairs and Negotiations at the General Secretariat of the GCC, Dr. Abdulaziz Hamad Aluwaisheg. --SPA 21:08 LOCAL TIME 18:08 GMT 0033 www.spa.gov.sa/w1851782