Latest news with #GulfRelations
The National
07-07-2025
- Business
- The National
Syria's President Ahmad Al Shara to visit UAE
Syria 's President Ahmad Al Shara is travelling to the UAE on an official visit, Syrian state media reported on Monday. The state-run Sana agency confirmed the trip but gave no further details. It is Mr Al Shara's second visit to the UAE since taking power in January. During his first trip in April, he met UAE President Sheikh Mohamed, who pledged support for Syria's reconstruction. Sheikh Mohamed also underscored that Syria's stability is vital to the broader Middle East and vowed the UAE would 'spare no effort' in providing assistance. Mr Al Shara has made Gulf ties a diplomatic priority. Last month, he visited Kuwait to discuss stabilisation and attract investment. Syria, ravaged by 14 years of war, needs an estimated $500 billion to rebuild, even as sporadic violence and sectarian strife persist.
The National
03-07-2025
- Politics
- The National
President Sheikh Mohamed meets King Hamad of Bahrain in Abu Dhabi
President Sheikh Mohamed and Bahrain's King Hamad on Thursday spoke of the "enduring co-operation" between their countries during discussions in Abu Dhabi. The meeting, held at the Bahraini monarch's residence in the UAE capital, focused on efforts to strengthen the deep-rooted ties between the Gulf neighbours. The two leaders regularly hold talks in the UAE and Bahrain to advance robust relations and promote development. The meeting was attended by Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed, Deputy Chairman of the Presidential Court for Development and Martyrs Families affairs; Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohamed, Deputy Chairman of the Presidential Court for Special Affairs; Lt Gen Sheikh Nasser bin Hamad, National Security Advisor, Royal Guard Commander, and Secretary General of the Supreme Defence Council of Bahrain, and Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad, First Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sports and President of the General Sports Authority (GSA) of Bahrain, along with several top officials from both sides.
Arab News
02-07-2025
- Business
- Arab News
Gulf diplomacy with Iran helped limit conflict with Israel, Middle East experts say
LONDON: Improved relations between Arab Gulf countries and Iran helped contain the recent conflict with Israel, Middle East experts said on Wednesday during a discussion about regional developments. Israel attacked Iran on June 13 with airstrikes targeting its nuclear program and military sites. Iran retaliated during the 12-day conflict by launching salvos of missiles toward Israeli cities. Many feared the war might escalate, dragging in other countries in the region, especially after the US joined the airstrikes on June 22 by dropping bombs on key Iranian nuclear sites. While Iran did retaliate against the US by attacking Al-Udeid airbase in Qatar on June 23, President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire two days later, and Iran has refrained from attacking other US targets in the region. When the war started, Gulf countries condemned Israel's attacks on Iran and called for deescalation. There has been a shift in the region in recent years away from an adversarial relationship with Iran to one of more pragmatic relations, cemented by a Chinese-brokered agreement between Riyadh and Tehran in March 2023. 'That reintegration of Iran into the Gulf security complex has played a really prominent role in preventing this from getting out of hand,' Simon Mabon, a professor of international politics and director of the SEPAD peace and conflict research center at Lancaster University, said during a discussion about developments in the Middle East this year. This approach showed Gulf states building a regional security architecture from the inside that is 'inclusive,' he added. It is viewed as a more 'pragmatic and more sustainable way of building a longer-term form of prosperity,' and the approach speaks to Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 reforms program and the economic pragmatism of Gulf states, he added during the online event organized by SEPAD and the Foreign Policy Centre in London. Eyad Alrefai, a lecturer in political science at King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah and a SEPAD fellow, said the efforts to forge new relationships between Gulf countries and Iran meant that the nations had been able to 'manage their differences diplomatically,' and this included economic issues. There had been less Iranian interference in the domestic affairs of GCC countries, and also in the wider Arab region, he added. This included Iran's decision not to get involved in Syria when President Bashar Assad, an Iranian ally, was removed from power by opposition fighters in December last year. The West's position on the Iran-Israel conflict, largely seen to be one of support of Israel, was symptomatic of the fact that those countries continue to adopt a 'tactical' outlook toward the region rather than a strategic one, Alrefai said. He urged those countries to engage with the Middle East as a socioeconomic, sustainable project moving forward. If the truce between Iran and Israel continues to hold, many see the end of the brief war as a potential opportunity for more stability in the region. Lina Khatib, an associate fellow at Chatham House's Middle East and North Africa Program, said there was 'a real possibility for an integrated economic and security and political partnership' to emerge. She said a weakened Iran also opens up the chance to restart the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Trump said on Tuesday that Israel had agreed to the terms of a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza, where more than 57,000 Palestinians have been killed during a devastating military campaign launched by Israeli authorities in response to the Hamas-led attacks against Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, during which 1,200 people were killed and dozens taken hostage. Khatib said a shift in domestic Israeli politics, with pressure from Trump, could reopen a pathway toward a long-term agreement between Israel and Palestine. This would also lead to further normalization of relations between Israel and Arab countries, she added. 'This will in turn encourage the flow of funding to places like Lebanon and Syria for reconstruction, which could only be good news for these countries economically, but also will help with stability,' Khatib said. 'Having a stable region is very much in the interest of countries in the Gulf as well.' Clive Jones, a professor of regional security and director of the Institute for Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies at Durham University, said Israel had scored a huge win against Iran but ran the risk of failing to convert it into a diplomatic opportunity. 'The challenge for Israel now is how you actually cash in those military gains for diplomatic advantage,' he said. 'I think Israel is actually missing a huge opportunity, for example by not engaging more proactively with the new regime in Syria.' He said Israel's reliance on its military superiority would not be enough to secure long-term security.
Arab News
23-06-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
GCC secretary general attends Gulf parliament speakers' meeting
RIYADH: Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council Jasem Al-Budaiwi participated in a meeting of the speakers of the Shura, Representatives, National and Ummah Councils of the GCC states, alongside President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola in Abu Dhabi on Monday. Al-Budaiwi emphasized the importance of establishing a stable mechanism to regulate the relationship between the Gulf parliaments and the European Parliament, an official report said. 'The importance of this meeting lies in its timing, which comes at a time when Gulf-European relations are witnessing a growing trend on most levels and a convergence of views on many regional and international issues,' he said in an official statement.
South China Morning Post
21-05-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Gulf states are playing the long game between the US and China
Following US President Donald Trump's high-stakes tour of the Persian Gulf – his first official foreign visit – the geopolitical chessboard of the Middle East is being redrawn. For China, a key player in the region's economic and strategic landscape, the implications are impossible to ignore. Trump's extraordinary reception in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates underscores a stark reality: Gulf leaders, who dealt with former US president Joe Biden's relatively arms-length approach, likely view Trump's transnationalism as a safer bet. The multitrillion-dollar deals signed during his visit – spanning artificial intelligence , technology and finance – signal more than just lucrative contracts for American firms. They mark a deliberate pivot by Gulf states to deepen ties with a potentially resurgent US economy. This realignment carries risks for Beijing. China has spent years cultivating the Gulf as a critical partner for energy imports, infrastructure projects and its Belt and Road Initiative. Yet Trump's laser focus on redirecting Gulf capital into US markets, bolstered by dozens of corporate leaders, threatens to squeeze China's access to the petrodollar pipeline that Beijing hopes will help fuel its economic revival. Trump's most audacious move, however, came not only for Riyadh, Abu Dhabi and Doha but Damascus. The lifting of sanctions on Syria , advocated by its recent regional allies Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey, signals a strategic realignment. People celebrate in Homs, Syria, after US President Donald Trump announced plans during his visit to Saudi Arabia to ease sanctions on Syria and normalise relations with its new government, on May 13. Photo: AP
