This work evaluates the current situation in the six member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council. The main areas of evaluation are the ongoing reforms, the proposed monetary union and the relationship with the United States. As for the reforms, the main focus is the transition from a closed to an open market economy and the mitigation of their oil dependence. Furthermore, the following chapter deals with an analysis of the Optimum Currency Area for the GCC region. Finally, the last chapter is aimed to provide a brief insight into the US-GCC relationship and its prospects in the near future.