RIYADH (BLOOMBERG) - The next Gulf Arab summit will be held in Saudi Arabia on Jan 5, Kuwait's Foreign Minister said in a statement on Thursday (Dec 17).

Officials of the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council meet regularly, but the next heads of state gathering has taken on particular significance following recent progress in Kuwaiti and US efforts to mediate an end to a more than three-year rift that has divided the energy-exporting region.

Talk of a potential breakthrough began to circulate earlier this month following a visit from President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Mr Jared Kushner to the region.

Several people with knowledge of the talks said that Saudi Arabia and Qatar are close to a preliminary rapprochement that may not initially include the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt - the other three countries that severed diplomatic and trade ties with Qatar in June 2017.