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November 12, 2026

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ankers are seen at the Khor Fakkan Container Terminal, the only natural deep-sea port in the region and one of the major container ports in the Sharjah Emirate, along the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway through which one-fifth of global oil output passes, on June 23, 2025.

Explainer

UAE selling Saudi oil highlights new Gulf energy realities

News surfaced on Nov. 10 that the UAE has reportedly marketed 1.87 million barrels of Saudi crude salvaged from a damaged supertanker for sale, marking an exceptional example of energy cooperation between Gulf rivals.

United Arab Emirates

ANDY BUCHANAN / AFP via Getty Images

GCC to build military command center in Kuwait as region simmers: What to know

GCC countries have stepped up their joint defense efforts with the announcement of a new forward command center to be headquartered in Kuwait, as tensions between Iran and the US continue to escalate.

Latest News

Analysis

Syria denies sending troops to fight Houthis in return for Saudi loans

Saudi Arabia's Deputy Foreign Minister Waleed el-Khereiji (R) speaks with Syria's interim foreign minister Asaad al-Shaibani

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Iraq, Saudi Arabia face attacks as Trump pursues Iran deal

Samuel Corum/Getty Images

Analysis

Gulf’s $3 trillion US investment drive faces post-midterm Trump reckoning

WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 18: Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia and U.S. President Donald Trump shake hands during a dinner in the East Room at the White House on November 18, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump is hosting the Crown Prince for meetings aimed at strengthening economic and defense ties, including the U.S. sale of F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Samuel Wendel

Senior Analyst, Middle East Business & Tech

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Jack Dutton

Chief Business Correspondent

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Francesco Schiavi

In Bologna, reporting on security, defense, economy, governance

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

Vanessa Ghanem

In Dubai, reporting on business, energy and politics

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan speak during a ceremony to mark the completion of the sea part of the TurkStream gas pipeline, in Istanbul, Turkey November 19, 2018. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC12DCA255B0

Erdogan seeks lifeline from Putin in Syria

The Turkish president will discuss Syria with his Russian counterpart in Moscow this coming week, as Qatar's Sheikh Tamim takes spotlight in Beirut.

Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz meets with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (not pictured) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia January 14, 2019. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via REUTERS - RC1EB8EB4070

Four years into Salman's reign, Saudi Arabia more unpredictable than ever

Saudi Arabia seems to have taken a number of wrong turns since Salman took the throne four years ago; can he make the decisions to get the country back on track?

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks to students at the American University in Cairo, Egypt, January 10, 2019. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via REUTERS - RC18BBC96000

Egyptians decry Pompeo's 'ode to Israel' from Cairo

In his recent speech in Cairo, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo failed to explain US policy on the Middle East, but he did voice support for Israel.

Iran plays Hamas card ahead of Israeli elections

Hamas insists on Qatari money; Iran offers training for Palestinian factions; Russia wrestles with its limits in Syria; UAE leads GCC rapprochement with Damascus.

Security guards stand in front of the United Arab Emirates embassy during its reopening in Damascus, Syria December 27, 2018. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki - RC1F43BEB420

Gulf states slowly warm to Damascus

Gulf states are turning their backs on supporting armed groups in Syria and preparing to re-engage the government in Damascus.

This handout picture taken and released by Thai Immigration Bureau on January 7, 2019 shows 18-year-old Saudi woman Rahaf Mohammed al-Qanun (2nd-L) is being escorted by the Thai immigration officer and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) officials at the Suvarnabhumi international airport in Bangkok. - Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun, seeking asylum has left Bangkok airport "under the care" of the UN refugee agency, a Thai official said Monday, following her desperate plea against deportation. (Ph

Gulf women activists still face persecution despite hopes of reform

Saudi Arabia's women still languish under the country's system of male guardianship, even as the case of Rahaf al-Qunun, who barricaded herself in a hotel room at the Bangkok airport, refusing to go back to Saudi, has brought renewed attention to the situation of women in the kingdom.

Can US Syria policy keep up with Trump?

The US president will need assistance from Vladimir Putin, Mohammed bin Salman and even Bashar al-Assad to close the deal with Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Syria.

Saudi Arabia gets US missile defense boost despite Khashoggi uproar

The State Department has approved a $195 million sale to upgrade Saudi Arabia’s missile defenses.

Human rights activists and friends of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi hold his pictures during a protest outside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey October 8, 2018. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RC1E12753350

Intel: Why Saudis can’t put Khashoggi case to rest

Turkish police forensic experts examine the roof of the residence of Saudi Arabia's Consul General Mohammad al-Otaibi as a part of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi investigation, in Istanbul, Turkey October 17, 2018. REUTERS/Osman Orsal - RC16743EB6C0

Khashoggi’s murder three months on: new clues, new dynamics?

Unresolved questions linger in the murder of The Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, but authorities are hoping chilling new footage might provide clues.

Ali Shamkhani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran speaks during the first meeting of national security secretaries of Afghanistan, China, Iran, India and Russia, in the Iranian capital Tehran on September 26, 2018. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

After US-Taliban talks, Iran also confirms dialogue

After years of accusations, Iran has confirmed that they have held talks with the Taliban.

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman waits for the family photo during the G20 summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina November 30, 2018. REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares/Pool TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC149554C0C0

Mohammed bin Salman's awful year

King Salman will pay a price for standing by his son as 2018 has become the year it all went bad for the crown prince and Saudi Arabia.