Experts play valuable and highly visible roles advising leaders in wealthy liberal democracies and international institutions. But far less is known about what they do—and to what effect—for authoritarian regimes and developing countries. That’s a problem, because autocratic leaders from China to Saudi Arabia increasingly rely on experts, especially from top consulting firms, universities, and think tanks […]
Another day, another Saudi headline — but one far different from the usual riff about the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the war in Yemen, the crown prince known as MbS, or the kingdom’s imprisoned women activists: The state-owned oil company Saudi Aramco made more profit last year than any other company in the world. Read Here […]
Grappling with a crippling economic crisis at home, Pakistan is compelled to tread slowly and carefully in the emerging geoeconomics and politics of the region. Although financial help and support from China, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have contributed to partially resolving the country’s balance of payments crisis, yet an IMF bailout seems inevitable. Some would translate it as a return […]
Arab regimes spend millions of dollars on think tanks, academic institutions, and lobbying firms in part to shape the thinking in Western capitals about domestic political activists opposed to their rule, many of whom happen to be religious. The field of counter-extremism has been the ideal front for the regional governments’ preferred narrative: They elicit […]
Arab leaders meeting in Tunis have issued a renewed call for the establishment of a Palestinian state and condemned a move by the United States to recognise Israeli sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights. Held in Tunisia’s capital, the 30th Arab League summit kicked off on Sunday against the backdrop of ongoing wars in Syria and Yemen, instability in Libya and […]
Addressing members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Abu Dhabi, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj Friday said the fight against terrorism is not a confrontation against any religion. Swaraj, who has been invited as a guest of honour at the meet of the 57 countries, said, “Terrorism and extremism bear different names and […]
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan to consider him the “ambassador of Pakistan” in Saudi Arabia moments after the two countries signed key memorandums of understanding (MoUs) worth $20 billion on Sunday in the fields of energy, petrochemicals, minerals, agriculture and food processing. Read Here – Arab News
The United States has spent 70 years and tens of billions of dollars training Arab militaries—with almost nothing to show for all the effort. Time and again, America’s Arab allies have failed to live up to martial expectations. The U.S.-trained Egyptian Armed Forces performed miserably in 1991 during Operation Desert Storm. If anything, they did […]
Gulf states with deep pockets and big appetites are asserting themselves in the Horn of Africa as never before. The flurry of new economic and military investments is reshaping geopolitical dynamics on both sides of the Red Sea, as two formerly distinct regions are fast becoming one. Read Here – Foreign Affairs
In the battle between Donald Trump’s gut and contradictory evidence, it’s a safe bet which will win the president’s favor. Days after major newspapers reported on a CIA assessment claiming that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the killing of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the president declared his fulsome support for Saudi Arabia. Read Here – […]
looking beyond borders 