The importance of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) are discussed by Dr. Omar Al Ubaidydli following the recent Gulf-German Forum on security and cooperation, organized by the German Federal Academy for Security Policy and the German-Arab Friendship Association. Discussions at the conference, attended by Prince Turki Al Faisal, Chairman of the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies, touched upon the need to restart negotiations over a GCC-EU free trade agreement (FTA), after previous negotiations collapsed in 2009.