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July 5, 2026

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A man walks past the flags of the countries attending the Gulf Cooperation Council summit at Bayan palace in Kuwait City on Dec. 5, 2017.

Analysis

How Iran war shaped divergent paths to security among GCC states

The Iran war left the Gulf more fragmented than united, with competing security strategies replacing any prospect of a common regional defense.

Sabena Siddiqui

By Sabena Siddiqui

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

Oil drilling near Dakhiliyah in the desert region of Hasakah, Syria, Jan. 25, 2026.

Syria launches gas project with Saudi firm in latest Gulf energy partnership

The project is the latest in a series of Gulf-backed investments aimed at rebuilding Syria's energy sector after the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad in December 2024.

Crude oil tankers, bulk carriers and vessels sit anchored around Qaboos Port on June 22, 2026, in Muscat, Oman.

Oil falls below $71 as US-Iran talks continue, Gulf exports rebound

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said in an X post on Wednesday that Iran and the United States had made "positive progress."

Latest News

Explainer

Saudi FM concludes China visit amid Trump-MBS friction: What to know

China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) shakes hands with Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud before a family photo for the attendees of a meeting of foreign ministers from Arab and Muslim-majority nations at the Diaoyutai State Guest House in Beijing on November 20, 2023. The international community must take urgent action to stop the "humanitarian disaster" unfolding in Gaza, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told visiting diplomats from Arab and Muslim-majority nations on Novembe

Saudi Arabia's FM heads to China amid differences with US on Iran war

PEDRO PARDO/AFP via Getty Images

Interview

Saudi labor localization will take ‘generation or two': Armada CEO

A student attends a training seminar at the Tourism Ministry Training center in the city of Riyadh on August 30, 2022.

Olivier Badard

CEO of Armada Holding

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

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

An undated image of Saad Ibrahim Almadi.

Saudi Arabia releases US citizen Almadi jailed over tweets

Saad Ibrahim Almadi was released after 16 months in prison but remains in Riyadh under a travel ban, according to his son.

murabba

Saudi Arabia's New Murabba project to lure global investors, but at what cost?

Ambitious project announcements are becoming an increasingly common feature of Saudi Arabia’s developmental aspirations.

Robert Mogielnicki

Robert Mogielnicki

Passengers are seen at Moscow's Domodedovo airport, the day S7 Airlines canceled all its international flights due to sanctions imposed on Russia over the country's invasion of Ukraine, March 5, 2022.

Russia to add Gulf countries to visa-free travel list

Russia stated that it was preparing visa-free travel agreements with a total of 17 countries, which include Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman and Syria.

HRH Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Saudi Arabia invests $51 billion in first wave of Shareek diversification

The Shareek investment and diversification strategy is set to create more than 64,000 jobs by 2040.

People watch the lauching of NASA and SpaceX Dragon Crew-6 mission to International Space Station, at the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) in Dubai on March 2, 2023. - A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket blasted off to the International Space Station carrying two NASA astronauts, a Russian cosmonaut and the second Emirati to voyage to space. (Photo by KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

UAE sends second astronaut to space on longest Arab mission

Sultan Saif AlNeyadi will collaborate with NASA and other international space agencies to conduct 19 scientific studies in a wide array of fields.

Officers of the Directorate of Narcotics Control of the Interior Ministry sort through tablets of Captagon seized during a special operation and presented before AFP afterward, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, March 1, 2022.

UAE busts 4.5 million Captagon pills in food cans after smuggler arrest

Amphetamine fenethylline, known by its brand name Captagon, has increasingly become the drug of choice among youth in Gulf Arab states.

United Arab Emirates

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan in Saint Petersburg on October 11, 2022. (Photo by PAVEL BEDNYAKOV/SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Ukraine war at year 1: Has Gulf's neutrality on Russia invasion paid off?

Gulf countries — mainly the United Arab Emirates, then Qatar — as well as Turkey have been major recipients of Russian real estate investment in addition to direct financial injections.

By Salim A. Essaid

LEAP technology conference, Saudi Arabia, Feb. 6, 2023.

China, US deals and robots headline Saudi Arabia's LEAP tech event

China's Huawei, Hectar, Lenovo were among major deals reached at Saudi's flagship technology event.

ERIC PIERMONT/AFP via Getty Images

Saudi Arabia announces vertical farming venture with US AeroFarms

Vertical farming is on the rise in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Saudi traders work at a bank in Riyadh on March 19, 2008. Asian stocks soared today after a big bounce on Wall Street as the US Federal Reserve slashed interest rates in a bid to contain a spiraling financial crisis and risk of recession. (Photo credit should read HASSAN AMMAR/AFP via Getty Images)

Qatar stays put after US, Saudi Arabia, UAE raise interest rates

The Gulf central banks’ moves followed the US Federal Reserve raising its rates. Inflation increased in both Qatar and Saudi Arabia at the end of 2022.

Saudi Arabia's Minister of Energy Abdulaziz bin Salman looks on during a press conference after the 45th Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee and the 33rd OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting in Vienna, Austria, on October 5, 2022. (Photo by VLADIMIR SIMICEK/AFP via Getty Images)

OPEC+ likely to maintain oil output at meeting, in gesture to US

While the OPEC+ group is expected to maintain oil production at its virtual meeting set for Feb. 1, global demand for oil is estimated to reach a record high in 2023.

Delegations attend the 46th ordinary session of the Council of Arab Central Banks and Monetary Authorities Governors, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Sept. 18, 2022.

Saudi GDP grows 8.7% in 2022 due to oil, non-oil growth

One credit-rating agency said Saudi Arabia’s GDP growth will slow down in 2023.