Policy Analysis

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  • Policy Analysis
    Saudi ArabiaRegional Relations and Geopolitics

    Saudi Reasons for a Rapprochement with Turkey

    May 31, 2022Kristian Coates Ulrichsen

    Reports that Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman may be planning to visit Turkey as part of an international trip in June, one of his first outside …

  • Policy Analysis
    YemenConflicts and Conflict Resolution

    Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council Offers Hope Amid Uncertainty

    May 24, 2022Gregory Aftandilian

    The surprise resignation of Yemeni President Abdrabbu Mansour Hadi in early April and his immediate replacement by an eight-member Presidential Leadership Coun…

  • Policy Analysis
    EgyptEnergy and Economics

    Gulf Countries’ Aid to Egypt: It Is Politics, Not the Economy, Stupid!

    May 5, 2022Khalil Al-Anani

    On April 4, 2022, Gulf Arab countries pledged $22 billion to help Egypt avert a currency crisis resulting from the Russian war on Ukraine. The Egyptian pound l…

  • Policy Analysis
    Saudi ArabiaReligion and Politics

    The Evolving Relationship Between Religion and Politics in Saudi Arabia

    Apr 20, 2022Jon Hoffman

    Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s (MbS) rise to power has resulted in what are arguably some of the most significant political transformations …

  • Policy Analysis
    Saudi ArabiaRegional Relations and Geopolitics

    After Parting Ways: The Coming Frosty Entente in Saudi-Turkish Relations

    Feb 2, 2022Jana J. Jabbour

    This is likely to be Turkey’s year of normalization with regional counterparts, as 2021 was one of diplomatic restoration for Turkish foreign policy. While in …

  • Policy Analysis
    Saudi ArabiaRegional Relations and Geopolitics

    Mohammed bin Salman’s Regional Rebranding Campaign

    Dec 16, 2021Kristian Coates Ulrichsen

    Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) toured the five smaller Gulf states between December 6, when he visited Oman, and December 10, when he arr…

  • Policy Analysis
    SudanRegional Relations and Geopolitics

    Sudan Coup: The Regional Interference behind a Faltering Transition

    Dec 11, 2021Khalil Al-Anani

    On October 25, 2021, Sudan’s General Abdel-Fattah al-Burhan staged a coup, declared a state of emergency, dissolved the power-sharing Sovereign Council, sacked…

  • Policy Analysis
    The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfRegional Relations and Geopolitics

    Turkey and the Gulf States: A New Era of Détente

    Dec 8, 2021Mustafa Gurbuz

    Turkish officials celebrated the November 24 visit of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to Ankara as the beginning of “a new era” between Tur…

  • Policy Analysis
    LebanonIdentity Politics and Sectarianization

    Saudi Arabia’s Third “Shock and Awe” Move in Lebanon

    Nov 9, 2021Joe Macaron

    On October 29th, Riyadh cut diplomatic ties with Beirut and suspended Lebanon’s imports into Saudi Arabia. These actions were aimed to force the resignation of…

  • Policy Analysis
    Saudi ArabiaRegional Relations and Geopolitics

    The Limits of Saudi-Iranian Détente

    Oct 29, 2021Daniel Brumberg

    During his years in the Nixon White House in the 1970s, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger sought to manage the US-Soviet rivalry by creating arenas of …

  • Policy Analysis
    YemenUS Foreign Policy

    Biden’s Yemen Conundrum

    Oct 5, 2021Nabeel Khoury

    US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan traveled to Riyadh on September 27 and was accompanied by US Special Envoy for Yemen Tim Lenderking. The visit highl…

  • Policy Analysis
    The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfRegional Relations and Geopolitics

    A New Strategic Architecture Is Emerging in the Gulf

    Sep 24, 2021Imad K. Harb

    As the Gulf crisis of 2017 recedes into memory, following the reconciliation in January at the “solidarity and stability” summit in Saudi Arabia’s al-Ula on th…