Bahrain: Tribalism, Sectarianism, and the Challenges of the 21st Century
More than any other Arab Gulf state, Bahrain reflects the contradictions and conflicts of its past—an ossified British colonial political structure without the British. Al Khalifah rule is a byproduct […]
Saudi Arabia is the Gulf’s Status Quo Power
Saudi Arabia has been an anchor of stability and growth in the Gulf and beyond. There are at least three reasons for this. First, as the largest economy in the […]
إيران لا تريد حل ملفها النووي
Published in Arabic in Okaz
Iraq’s Diplomatic Mediations: Strong on Symbolism but Short on Substance
Over the last two years, Iraq has been overwhelmed with protests, internal instability, US-Iran confrontation on Iraqi soil, political stalemate, and intra-Shia power rivalries. However, against all odds, Iraq has […]
Charting a New Direction: Turkey and Israel Normalise Ties
On 17 August 2022, Turkey and Israel announced that they would restore diplomatic ties and appoint ambassadors. Signs that the tide was turning were apparent with Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s […]
Is the Anti-Assad Camp Stuck in a Prisoner’s Dilemma?
Recent events surrounding the Syrian war are impacting diplomatic and political processes designed to end it, including Turkish calls for reconciliation talks with the Syrian government. This is a result […]
Why Peace Isn’t Coming to Iran-GCC Relations
Iran and the remaining parties to the nuclear agreement—formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)—plus the United States have been locked into talks about its revival for […]
How Israel Has Embraced the ‘New Middle East’
Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s former Prime Minister, who is once again running for that office, made a career selling a catching idea. Instead of the unappealing and risky formula of “land […]
Can Europe Sustain the Iranian-Saudi Rapprochement?
On 20 July 2022, the spokesperson of Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs shared an upbeat assessment of the five rounds of the Iranian-Saudi private talks, alluding to the upgrade of […]
Beyond a Tacit Security Regime: Constraints on Saudi-Israeli Relations
Israel’s relationship with the Gulf states has been characterised as hostile since the former’s establishment as a state. Yet the shifting regional dynamics following the 2011 Arab Spring have dramatically […]
