Iranian Suspicion, not Acquiescence, is the New Baseline: The Iran war has slowed implementation of the Iraqi Development Road (IDR) project, while also strengthening the project’s case as an ...

HBKU and the Middle East Council on Global Affairs concluded a four-day executive program in Doha aimed at strengthening ...

On August 7, 2026, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye, and Pakistan announced a trilateral mutual defense pact signed in Mecca by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and ...

The Strait of Hormuz remains one of Iran’s most significant points of strategic leverage. Approximately, a fifth of global liquid petroleum consumption, along with a substantial share of the world’s ...

Throughout the U.S.-Iran war, the question of Yemen has remained central to the calculations of regional and international actors. Two key factors are at play here. The first is the potential for the ...

On April 11, 2026, Libya’s two rival governments approved the country’s first unified national budget since 2013, valued at nearly 190 billion Libyan dinars (approximately $30 billion). The agreement, ...

On April 28, 2026, the United Arab Emirates announced it would end its 59-year membership in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) effective May 1, 2026. The UAE’s abrupt decision ...

The U.S.-Israel-Iran war has placed the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states — Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) — under growing economic pressure, though ...

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is facing a crisis of strategic identity and functional redefinition, with implications for its military and operational capabilities, the cohesion of its ...

An International System in Transition: The world is shifting from an international system with known boundaries to a new global order whose rules have yet to be defined. The Iran war has accelerated ...

More than just the latest episode in a familiar cycle, the February 28, U.S.-Israeli airstrikes against Iran are a structural rupture for the Gulf, a moment after which the region’s security ...

Domestic Dynamics Are Central to U.S. War Policy: The Iran war highlighted the importance of domestic dynamics in shaping U.S. war policy. Public support and political unity are now just as important ...