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June 9, 2026

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Vessels are seen anchored in the Strait of Hormuz, off the port city of Khasab on Oman's northern Musandam Peninsula, on May 17, 2026.

Analysis

Turkey pushes Iraq, Syria trade routes as Hormuz crisis disrupts Gulf shipping

Turkey is using the Hormuz crisis to promote Iraq- and Syria-based Gulf-Europe corridors, but experts say the routes remain too costly, underbuilt and politically fragile to rival maritime shipping.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Mario Tama/Getty Images

Container rates climb as logistic firms scale up Hormuz alternatives

The Drewry World Container Index measuring container shipping prices has soared by more than 40% since the start of the US-Israel-Iran war.

United Arab Emirates

Latest News

Analysis

As Gulf crisis reshapes energy markets, experts warn of new normal

Philippe LOPEZ / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Ports and infrastructure: UAE embraces new economic order in Syria

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrives to attend the second day of the first Syrian-Emirati (United Arab Emirates) Investment Forum, at the People's Palace in Damascus on May 12, 2026. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP via Getty Images)

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Vanessa Ghanem

In Dubai, reporting on business, energy and politics

Karen Young

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional energy

Reve Chaaban

In Doha reporting on culture

What fading oil fortunes means for Turkey's businesses

Turkish businesspeople are losing sleep over oil-producing states' deferrals of payments to international contractors and the possible loss of mega projects.

Fighters from the Democratic Forces of Syria position themselves in Ghazila village after taking control of the town from Islamic State forces in the southern countryside of Hasaka, Syria February 17, 2016. Picture taken February 17, 2016. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RTX27JLM

Can Ankara's plans keep up with Syria's escalation?

The course of events in Syria offer opportunities but also new threats to Ankara, which still has to deal with structural flaws in its Syrian policy.

Qatar's Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani (C) arrives in Mehrabad airport ahead of the 16th summit of the Non-Aligned Movement in Tehran, August 30, 2012. REUTERS/Roohollah Vahdati/ISNA (IRAN - Tags: POLITICS) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - RTR379P1

Qatar's precarious position between Saudi Arabia, Iran

The recent decline in Saudi-Iranian relations has put GCC members in a bind, in particular Qatar, which for years has tried to maintain diplomatic and economic ties with Iran.

Who's to blame for recent kidnappings in Iraq?

Many foreign diplomats and workers have been kidnapped in Iraq by armed gangs that have been spreading in the absence of security measures, which could damage diplomatic representation.

Russia, Qatar pushed to compromise. But will they?

A recent visit between Qatari and Russian officials indicate that in spite of their many differences, the two states may seek to cooperate.

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on their ability to film or take pictures in Tehran.

A worker walks down a walkway on the SPQ1 gas platform on the southern edge of Iran's South Pars gasfield in the Gulf, off Assalouyeh, 1,000 km (621 miles) south of Tehran, January 26, 2011. Picture taken January 26. REUTERS/Caren Firouz (IRAN - Tags: BUSINESS ENERGY) - RTXX58R

Will South Pars help bring Iran's economy back to life?

The newly inaugurated phases 15 and 16 of Iran's giant South Pars project have the potential to greatly boost the country's economy.

Amid financial hardship, Erdogan looks to Qatar as 'rich daddy'

Turkey’s leadership, increasingly isolated in the region amid spats with Russia and Iraq, knocks on the doors of Israel and Qatar, with the latter providing much-needed foreign investment.

A soldier from the Saudi-led coalition walks past a broken-down tank on a street in Yemen's southern port city of Aden September 27, 2015. As Gulf-backed forces assemble in Marib province east of Sanaa ahead of a widely expected thrust towards the Houthi-held capital, the fate of Aden and its hinterland may offer a glimpse at whether some form of central government can be resurrected. To match Insight YEMEN-SECURITY/ADEN REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser - RTX1SQ8T

What's Saudi's new Islamic coalition really up to?

Not a lot is known about Saudi Arabia's newly announced Islamic Military Alliance, leaving observers to ponder its prospects.

Will Qatar's investment in ancient pyramids bring tourists to Sudan?

With funding from Qatar, archaeologists from around the world are gathering in Sudan to excavate the country's forgotten pyramids.

A man looks as the world's biggest Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) tanker DUHAIL as she crosses through the Suez Canal April 1, 2008. The Qatari tanker, which was built to transfer LNG from Qatar to Europe and the U.S., is on her first trip ever from Qatar to Spain. REUTERS/Stringer (EGYPT) - RTR1YZYN

Will Turkey be able to replace Russian gas with Qatari imports?

Although Qatar cannot replace Russian gas for Turkey, it is promising to see that Ankara is exploring new strategies for diversifying its long‐term energy supply.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin (R) and his French counterpart Francois Hollande speak after a news conference at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, November 26, 2015. France and Russia agreed on Thursday to exchange intelligence on Islamic State and other militant groups in Syria to help improve the effectiveness of their aerial bombing campaigns in the country, French President Francois Hollande said. REUTERS/Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool - RTX1W0QV

Erdogan more isolated than ever on Syria

The Turkish president is on the defensive after Turkey’s shooting down of a Russian warplane; the Syrian war enters a more dangerous phase.

Sudan gets $2.2B for joining Saudi Arabia, Qatar in Yemen war

After providing financial support, Saudi Arabia is collecting on its IOU from Sudan, which now finds itself enmeshed in Yemen's civil war.