Rejiggering Gulf Security: China’s Game of Shadow Boxing
China and its Gulf partners appear to be engaged in a game of shadow boxing.
At stake is the future of Gulf security and the...
Breaking with the past: China hints at greater political engagement in the Middle East
China is contemplating greater political engagement in the Middle East in what would constitute a break with its longstanding effort to avoid being sucked...
Flying Under the Radar: Iranian Alternatives to Suez and Belt and Road
As Eurasia’s geopolitical sands shift, Iran is touting a sea and rail hook-up involving Iranian, Russian, and Indian ports that would link the sub-continent...
Palestine Plays Regional Power Politics with Proposed Energy Deal
When Faed Mustafa, Palestine’s ambassador in Ankara, expressed interest in June in negotiating with Turkey an agreement on the delineation of maritime boundaries in the...
Turning Gulf Security Upside Down
Like many paradigms across the globe, the pandemic and its associated economic downturn have changed the paradigm shaping debates about Gulf security that was...
Economic Crisis Does Little to Dampen Mohammed bin Salman’s Pricey Ambitions
When Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan announced austerity measures in May, including an $8 billion USD cut back on spending on Vision 2030 —...
US-China Rivalry: Gulf States Struggle to Hedge Their Bets
While much of the focus in recent weeks has been on Israel’s relations with China, the real litmus test of the United States’ ability...
Fragile Big Power Relationships Add to Middle Eastern Uncertainty
Fraught with multiple powder kegs that could blow up at any moment, Turkish-Russian relations constitute a study in the management of a new world...
UAE Targets Turkey and Qatar in the Mediterranean
Europe is progressively being sucked into the Middle East and North Africa’s myriad conflicts. As if wars on its doorstep in Libya and Syria...
Syria lures but will China bite?
China looms large as a potentially key player alongside Russia and Iran in President Bashas al-Assad’s post-war Syria. With Russia and Iran lacking the...