Talks to boost trade by approximately $2 billion a year between members of the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states and the UK are underway today in Riyadh but little progress is expected on the major issue of human rights. UK Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan is in the Saudi capital where she will launch free trade negotiations with GCC states, made up of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. The GCC trading block is the UK’s seventh largest export market, representing some $41 billion in annual bilateral trade. Demand for goods and services in the region is expected to grow by 35 per cent to $981 billion by 2035, according to the UK. A free trade deal … Continue reading UK sidesteps human rights as $2bn trade talks with GCC get underway