Domestic Political Chaos Is Not the Only Thing Happening in Iraq
It appears that calm has returned to Iraq after the reported intervention of Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the country’s chief and widely respected Shia cleric. In recent weeks, violence had occurred in and near parliament, which has been unable to implement last October’s election results. The clashes involved demonstrators and armed forces loyal to Moqtada al-Sadr, […]
Why Iran Doubts Joe Biden’s Jerusalem Declaration
The Jerusalem Declaration on the US-Israel Strategic Partnership commits the United States and its top Middle East allies “to use all elements of their national power to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.” Whilst hailed by some observers as a dramatic policy commitment by the United States, the Islamist Republic is unimpressed. The regime does not […]
The Shaping of the Persian Gulf Security Order
The Persian Gulf is of great importance, both in terms of energy resources and because it is a strategic passage for regional trade. Fundamentally, the internal security of countries in any region is inseparable from the wider security of that region, while the interests of supra-regional powers are also closely related to the region’s security […]
Book Review – “Street-Level Governing: Negotiating the State in Urban Turkey” by Elise Massicard
Elise Massicard, Street-Level Governing: Negotiating the State in Urban Turkey (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2022) During the last century, Turkey has seen the abolition of the Caliphate in 1924, the first democratic elections in 1950, multiple coups in the following decades, the rise to power of Recep Tayyip Erdogan in 2003, and the move from […]
Can Lebanon and Israel avoid war by solving their maritime border dispute?
Lebanon and Israel are stuck in indirect negotiations over where the lines should be drawn with respect to their maritime borders and the scope of each state’s rights to explore for natural resources. But will a deal help ease historic hostilities between the two neighbors, thereby reducing the risk of another destructive war? The United […]
Why Hamas’ Russian diplomacy initiative could bother Israel
In early May, Moscow accepted the request of a visiting Hamas delegation to mediate between rival Palestinian factions. This diplomatic achievement gives Hamas new ways to challenge Israel; both in consolidating its own political standing in the Palestinian territories and by shifting Russia’s views on the merits of its security cooperation with Tel Aviv. Hamas’ […]
Climate Change and the Electric Future: Key Trends and Likely Winners
Introduction The region’s cross-border electricity trade efficiency deficits pose challenges. Climate change is driving transformations towards decarbonization. Almost all technical studies of decarbonized futures conclude that a clean future will be an electric one. In the near future, the world’s electric grids will need to store, and supply, double or triple the amount of electricity […]
Economic Relations Between Israel and the Gulf States
The Abraham Accords opened a new page in Israeli relations with Arab states. Besides military and security benefits, the process of normalization brought new possibilities for broad development of economic relations. These advantages are already being realised. The Israelis’ expectations from the agreements are quite high. So far, the greatest developments can be seen on […]
Iraq’s Educational System: History and Rebuilding Process Post-Daesh
Introduction Wars, conflicts and resistance campaigns not only destroyed the economy of Iraq, but also severely damaged the education system. The public education system is the backbone of any civil society and the development or progress of a nation is connected with as well as measured by the development of its educational system. Since its […]
The GCC has an opportunity to play a role in resolving the Russia-Ukraine crisis
Published in the Saudi Gazette