Gulf states

Growing differences with the US president over the war in Gaza and the new government in Syria are compounding domestic pressure on the Israeli prime minister.

Saudi Arabia, Qatar and UAE will seek to deepen ties with Washington – but tariffs and oil prices worry Gulf states, as does continuing violence in Gaza.

Donald Trump values his personal relations with Saudi royals and the kingdom is willing to play the role of host. But with prestige comes expectations.

The Houthis are the one member of the Axis of Resistance that grew stronger over the last year. But airstrikes will not deter their attacks on Red Sea shipping or influence Tehran.

A diminished Iran and its weakened proxies offer Riyadh and Washington a long-awaited opportunity to alter the regional balance of power – but Trump’s team must be careful about the deal it is pursuing with Tehran, writes Lina Khatib.

US involvement is essential to a credible peace. Israel-Saudi normalization may be key to unlocking President Trump’s support for the Arab plan.

The proposal for a US takeover of Gaza would disrupt almost every foreign policy objective the new US administration has in the Middle East.

Gulf states will continue the move to regional reconciliation but on Iran and Israel–Palestine, will look to reset the rules of engagement.

Harris and Trump look set to continue US deprioritization of the region, but they would do better to enlist the support of their partners.

Eliminating Hamas and Hezbollah leaders will not on their own bring peace. Tehran’s malign influence must be countered.

The informal group of emerging markets may lack coherence, but ending the dollar’s dominance has become a theme – and digital currency innovations offer interesting possibilities, writes David Lubin.

Any security deal would have significant implications for both countries and the Middle East. It deserves more serious attention than it has received so far.

Beijing’s diplomatic activism shows it is worried Iran–Israel tit-for-tat may undermine Saudi–Iran reconciliation.

The strikes demonstrated a more assertive approach from Tehran, but the region’s security now depends on Israel’s ability to play a longer game.

Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE may demand greater Palestinian concessions in exchange for normalizing relations with Israel, writes Christina Paschyn.

The risk of regional escalation means that the Gulf Arab states should do more to push for a ceasefire, not only for humanitarian reasons, but for their economic self-interest.

Calls for a ceasefire have yet to yield results. Those in the region must prioritize a political settlement.

With a COP28 deal to transition away from fossil fuels, speeding up the energy transition and economic diversification will help Gulf countries protect the needs of future generations and avoid costly consequences of delayed action.

In this bonus episode of our weekly podcast we discuss the crisis in Gaza at the Doha Forum.

The UAE Consensus is both groundbreaking in scope, and insufficient for the most climate vulnerable groups. Now countries must prepare ambitious new national climate plans to build on the agreement.

In spite of its diplomatic activism, Ankara is careful that its role will not overshadow that of the Arab Gulf states

The latest episode of our weekly podcast discusses the ambitions for the COP28 summit in Dubai.

Regional players have spent the last five years finding pragmatic solutions to end conflict and forge connections. Now they must address the issue they have sought to avoid.

An agreement would represent an important victory in the run up to 2024 elections. But Biden must take the time needed to build durable bipartisan support.

Israel hopes the corridor announced at the G20 will facilitate normalized relations with Saudi Arabia. Riyadh doesn’t see it that way.

Due to worsening Sino-US relations and tightening EU markets, Beijing is hoping for a better reception in the Middle East, Africa and Latin America, writes Yu Jie.

As dust storms in the Middle East become increasingly frequent and intense, adversaries must cooperate to address the causes.

It was meant to prompt a reconsideration of LGBTQ Qataris. Instead, international coverage of the tournament entrenched local distrust, writes Christina Paschyn.

Episode 27 of our weekly podcast examines the Syrian regime with signs that governments in the Middle East are prepared to engage with Bashar al-Assad again.

The future of the region is still up for grabs. It will be up to those who believe in democracy and progress to seize it.

A historic opportunity exists to promote multilateral cooperation in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, building on recent political de-escalation. With the right design, a new forum could succeed where previous initiatives have failed.

More cohesive international engagement is needed to support stability in Ethiopia and Sudan and resolve damaging cross-border disputes that jeopardize security and development across the Horn of Africa.

With consistent and long-term support from the US, the Abraham Accords could have a transformative impact on Middle East economic cooperation and regional security.

Getting to a security framework for the Middle East needs the buy-in of all regional actors, enabled by critical external partners. The time to act is now, argue Sanam Vakil and Neil Quilliam.

This paper sheds light on Abu Dhabi’s ambitions to play a key role in shaping political and governance structures across the region.

There is and will continue to be an edge of rivalry in Egypt’s relations with the dominant Gulf Arab powers. This paper will focus primarily on the Egypt–Gulf relationship during the Sisi era.

How would the states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) respond to a serious cyber incident? This could be a global ransomware event, a critical infrastructure incident targeted at the energy sector, or an attack on government departments. This paper examines cyber resilience in the states of the GCC. 

Since 2017 Qatar has been boycotted by the Arab Quartet. This paper examines the dynamics of the dispute and identifies elements required to reach a solution.

Iran’s relations with the Gulf states are guided by opportunism rather than an overarching strategy.

Revision of GCC cybercrime laws is urgently required, and is essential for better security, for a better society and for better civil liberties.