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Oman will strengthen security amid Gulf tensions

Location:

OMAN

With an ageing head of state, Oman must prepare for a post-Sultan Qaboos era, with some of its key policies at odds with those of other Gulf governments.

Azerbaijan to push Karabakh as Russia looks elsewhere

Location:

ARMENIA/AZERBAIJAN

Azerbaijan is increasing pressure on Karabakh and Armenia. Azerbaijani environmentalists blocked the only road connecting Armenia with Karabakh on December 12, just days after…

Qatar faces difficult balancing act in ties with Iran

Location:

QATAR

Escalating tensions between the United States and Iran threaten to derail Qatar's delicate geostrategic position as a small, albeit wealthy, fish in a big pond. Qatar has much to…

Oman-Iran relations will survive pressures

Location:

OMAN/IRAN

Oman-Iran relations

Gulf crisis could erode Omani and Kuwaiti independence

Location:

OMAN/KUWAIT

The standoff is realigning the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) around a hawkish inner core of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain. Kuwait has a useful…

US efforts could only paper over the Gulf rift

Location:

US/GULF STATES

A senior US administration official briefed in advance that the Saudi-Emirati rift with Qatar was to be “a key point of discussion”, with the possibility of a special session of…

Beirut’s internal and external pressures will mount

Location:

LEBANON

As a new crisis in relations with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states intensifies and internal sectarian tensions mount, compromise Prime Minister Najib Mikati is pushing ahead…

Al-Qaida core could keep control of Syria’s Idlib

Location:

SYRIA

The last major rebel-held area in Syria, Idlib province is under the military control of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a salafi-jihadist rebel alliance. Jaysh al-Ahrar, the largest…

Qatar will regain confidence as a regional player

Location:

QATAR

Since the sudden end of the three-and-a-half-year ‘Quartet’ boycott in January, Doha has stepped up efforts to normalise relations with formerly hostile Arab countries. It is also…

A Gulf human rights pushback worsens EU dilemmas

Location:

GULF STATES/EU

Riyadh reacted to Ottawa’s criticism of the arrests by breaking diplomatic ties and immediately withdrawing investments, trade, students and medical patients, demanding support…