Blog Post

Recent data suggests that the positive impact of a decade of reforms to improve Saudi labor market outcomes may now be waning.

As Qatar looks to the future, it will have to assess the battered landscape of the global LNG industry, reassure its customer base, and rethink its approach for a very different market.

Under Emir Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, Qatar would be known – as a mediator, a broadcaster, a host of mega sports events, and an investor – and that notoriety would itself become a form of security: deterrence by relevance.

Following Saudi Arabia’s early exit from the World Cup, the kingdom’s soccer authorities may enter a period of introspection considering challenges that have cast a shadow over the post-2023 landscape of Saudi soccer.

With an aging and largely untested fleet, U.S. mine clearing operations can restore maritime access but only under favorable political and operational conditions.

The impact of the Iran war on the Saudi economy has been mitigated by investments in “economic resiliency,” including the East-West oil pipeline, relatively prudent fiscal policy, and the accumulation of a large stock of foreign financial assets.

The vulnerability of the world's most important energy chokepoint has been laid bare, setting in motion changes that are likely to outlast the conflict.

Ports will be key focus areas of economic infrastructure buildout efforts as the region works to move beyond the Iran conflict.