Gulf Nashra Weekly Digest
Gulf Authors Debate Syria’s Druze Crisis; Kuwait Introduces Military Drones; Windmills Installed in Three Regions of Oman; New Book Explores Regionalism
Media Coverage
Geopolitics
“Bahrain announces $17 billion in US deals during Trump talks.” Reuters, July 16, 2025.
“Under the plan, Bahrain was expected to sign a deal valued at about $7 billion for its national carrier, Gulf Air, to buy 12 Boeing aircraft with an option for six more and 40 General Electric engines, according to a White House official.”
Go Deeper: “US and Bahrain sign 'milestone' nuclear co-operation agreement.” The National, July 17, 2025.
“UAE’s Mohammed bin Zayed heads to Turkey amid heightened regional diplomacy.” Al-Monitor, July 15, 2025.
“The visit comes as the two regional powers engage in overlapping diplomatic efforts, including back-channel talks between Syria and Israel and the conflict in the South Caucasus.”
Go Deeper: “UAE leader visits Turkey, emphasizing shift from rivalry to regional alignment.” Al-monitor, July 16, 2025.
“Kuwaiti Interior Minister: ‘Hezbollah’ Will Remain on the Terror List.” Alarabiya, July 14, 2025.
“Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousef emphasized that his country required Hezbollah’s designation, reaffirming that Kuwait’s security is a red line. He added, “I personally will not allow any transgression by any individual or any party in Kuwait.” His remarks came during a press statement following his meeting with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun at Baabda Palace in Lebanon.”
Go Deeper: “Kuwait reiterates firm stance against Hezbollah as ties with Lebanon enter new stage.” The Arab Weekly, July 15, 2025.
“Defense Minister: Integration of Drones Marks a Strategic Leap in Enhancing Kuwaiti Army Capabilities” Al Qabas, July 16, 2025.
“Defense Minister Sheikh Abdullah Ali Abdullah Al-Sabah stated on Thursday that the launch of the Bayraktar TB2 drone reflects the wise political leadership’s commitment to supporting continuous modernization and development of defense systems, aiming to boost combat readiness and ensure the highest levels of security and stability in the country.”
Go Deeper: “GCC Drone Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends & Forecasts (2025 - 2030).” Mordor Intelligence, July 4, 2025.
Economy & Market
“Syria signs $800m Tartous port deal with UAE firm DP World.” Al Jazeera, July 13, 2025.
“In May, Damascus entered a 30-year agreement with French shipping company CMA CGM to operate Latakia port. That same month, Syria inked a $7bn energy deal with a coalition of Qatari, Turkish, and US firms to revive the country’s power sector.”
Go Deeper: “Role for Gulf States in Syria’s Reconstruction.” Orion Forum, February 8, 2025.
“Proceeds from GCC IPOs decline 6% in H1 2025 to $3.4bln.” Zawya, July 15, 2025.
“GCC IPO markets were shaped by significant geopolitical shifts in the first half of 2025, with proceeds declining 6% to $3.4 billion from the previous year’s $3.6 billion raised, according to Kuwaiti research firm Markaz.”
Go Deeper: “Markaz: GCC IPOs raise USD 3.4 billion in H1 2025.” Markaz, July 7, 2025.
“Qatar Wealth Fund Becomes ChinaAMC’s Third-Largest Shareholder.” Bloomberg, July 11, 2025.
“China Asset Management Co. said Qatar Holding LLC became its third-largest shareholder after acquiring a 10% stake, marking the latest instance of Middle Eastern capital flowing into the world’s second-largest economy.”
Go Deeper: “Qatar’s Role in China’s Belt and Road Initiative.” Springer, June 25, 2025.
Domestic
“UAE’s $245bn budget to focus on AI, education and health” AGBI, July 16, 2025.
“In June S&P Global said that the UAE is expected to maintain fiscal surpluses through 2028 despite lower oil prices and global economic headwinds..”
“The surplus is expected to average 3.2 percent of GDP between 2025 and 2028, based on assumed Brent oil prices at $60 per barrel in 2025 and $65 per barrel through 2028.”
Go Deeper: “Federal General Budget Annual Report 2025.” UAE’s Ministry of Finance, 2025. [PDF].
“Kamco Invest: Kuwait Records Lowest Outstanding Debt Instruments at USD 13.2 Billion.” Alwasat, July 7, 2025.
“According to Kamco Invest’s July 2025 report on the GCC fixed income market, global debt issuances reached record levels in Q1 and H1 2025, totaling USD 6.4 trillion in the first half of the year, based on data from the London Stock Exchange Group. Among GCC countries, Kuwait recorded the lowest value of outstanding debt instruments, amounting to approximately USD 13.2 billion.”
Go Deeper: “GCC Fixed Income Market Update.” Kamco Invest, July 2025. [PDF].
“Saudi non-oil trade surplus with GCC jumps over 200% in April.” Arab News, July 10, 2025.
“According to the latest figures released by the General Authority for Statistics, the Kingdom posted a trade surplus of SR3.51 billion ($935 million) with GCC nations during the month, compared to just SR1.16 billion in April 2024 — a year-on-year increase of 203.2 percent.”
Go Deeper: “Can Saudi Arabia’s Non-Oil Momentum Drive Regional Growth?” Oxford Economics, June 12, 2025.
“OQ and Naqaa Sign Agreement to Develop Wind Energy Projects in Three Omani Governorates.” Alroya, July 16, 2025.
“OQ Alternative Energy has signed a joint development agreement with Naqaa Sustainable Energy to invest in several wind energy projects across the Wilayats of Duqm, Mahout, and Sadah, located in the Dhofar and Al Wusta governorates. The projects aim for a combined production capacity of up to 1,100 megawatts, utilizing locally manufactured wind turbines from Mawarid Turbine, which plans to establish a factory in Duqm.”
Go Deeper: “Oman’s Renewable Energy Share More Than Doubles in Early 2025.” Utilities, July 15, 2025.
Gulf Opinions
Amid the shifting dynamics in Syria—marked by ongoing tensions between the central government and the Druze minority, as well as escalating Israeli involvement—Gulf commentators have turned their attention to the challenges facing the country. Khalid Almalik, Editor-in-Chief of Saudi Arabia’s Al Jazirah newspaper, strongly condemned Israel’s recent unilateral strikes on Syrian government forces in Suwayda, which were ostensibly carried out to protect the Druze community. He argued that this blatant intervention, lacking any UN or Security Council mandate, “undermines Syrian sovereignty and fuels sectarian strife.” Almalik emphasized the urgent need for unity under the authority of the “central government” and its security forces, insisting that “only cohesive national cooperation will prevent chaos, defeat foreign designs, and facilitate rebuilding the nation.” Adding to this perspective, Saudi scholar and activist Dr. Madawi Al Rasheed criticized Israel’s actions as part of a broader agenda to destabilize centralized Arab states through “sectarian” fragmentation. In a pointed tweet, she wrote: “Israel's goal is known, which is to create sectarian entities that dismantle the centralized state, so that the Jewish state becomes the dominant model, rather than just a hybrid project that recently entered the homelands.” She further noted that “the exploitation by the West and Israel of the minorities issue and manipulating the system of their protection is an old project that will not end.” From a more critical standpoint, the Saudi commentator known as Columbus took aim at the minorities themselves. In his view, these communities contributed to their own marginalization: “Factions and minorities isolated themselves in the mountains, fleeing from the embrace of their homeland's people, fortified themselves in caves, and collaborated throughout history with invaders, becoming daggers stabbed into the nation's side.”
Offering a different analysis, Bahraini writer Radhi Alsamak focused on the “failures” of the post-Assad Syrian regime, now eight months into power. He contended that the government has failed to fulfill its promises, particularly in holding “identity-based” militias accountable. He pointed to the Alawite killings on the northern coast and the “massacre of at least 170 Druze” civilians in As-Suwayda, for which there have been “no arrests or transparent investigations.” In this context, Alsamak argued, Israel “exploited the unrest” as a pretext to launch strikes on major government targets, including the presidential palace and military headquarters. He called for “a truly inclusive transitional government, genuine judicial reform, and a unified national army that serves all Syrians.” From the United Arab Emirates, Abdullah Alhashmi viewed Israel’s actions as a calculated message. He explained that Israel aimed to send “a dual warning”—first, to the Syrian regime “to stay out of southern conflicts,” and second, to signal that its “red line” includes protecting the Druze minority in Syria. Alhashmi praised the joint declaration by the Gulf states, Jordan, Turkey, and Egypt, which expressed support for Syria’s unity and rejection of foreign interference. He saw this as a strategic effort to restore balance and defend Syrian sovereignty during a fragile transitional period. Finally, Omani analyst Ahmed Batamira characterized these developments as part of Israel’s long-term strategy to reshape the regional order. He argued that Israel’s actions are driven by “clear political motives, ambitions to reshape the region, and secure future gains through a new security order aligned with its own vision and objectives.”
More Gulf Opinions
“The international community’s laxity, along with the inaction of institutions responsible for maintaining international peace and security, has encouraged the Israeli entity to persist in its provocative and irresponsible policies in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, and Syria—policies that have endangered the security of the entire region.”
Editorial Board, Al Sharq, (Qatar), July 15, 2025.
“And the Arabs continue to watch ..Until they are slaughtered one by one .. and nation by nation.”
Jaber Alharmi, X, (Qatar), July 16, 2025.
“What Israel is doing in #Syria proves that Assad and his allies were loyal agents of Israel.”
Tariq Alhomayed, X, (Saudi Arabia), July 16, 2025.
“I am surprised at those who are surprised by #Israel's bombing of #Syria .. the Zionists' plan has been clear from the beginning towards Syria.”
Meshal Alnami, X, (Kuwait), July 16, 2025.
“The biggest mistake Syrians, Arabs, and Turkey could make is to boycott and ostracize the Druze, fostering in their children feelings of allegiance to Israel... They are Syrians, and the stability and development of their lands under the umbrella of the Syrian state is better for everyone than leaving them vulnerable to money laundering operations, drug trafficking, and border threats.”
Ahmed Mikaf, X, (Saudi Arabia), July 17, 2025.
“No worry or fear for Syria, for it is in careful and trustworthy hands regarding its sovereignty, unity, and stability, focusing on social peace among its diverse groups, realizing that it does not need more bloodshed among its people, nor does it wish to provoke conflicts with its neighbors, leaning toward peace and tranquility as a condition for its prosperity, with support from moderate Arab states.”
Abdulkhaleq Abdulla, X, (UAE), July 17, 2025.
Gulf Nashra Picks
Book: “Making Space for the Gulf: Histories of Regionalism and the Middle East.” Arang Keshavarzian, Stanford University Press, April 2024.
Analysis: “The Gulf Countries Want to Stay Out of the Iran Conflict. Each Is Taking Its Own Path.” Andrew Leber, Carnegie, July 7, 2025.
Research: Faozi Al-Goidi “The Sea vs. the Desert: Rahmah ibn Jabir and the Dialectic of Piracy and Maritime Influence.” Al-Muntaqa, February 2025.
Analysis: “Energy strategy across the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean.” Phillip Cornell, Atlantic Council, June 12, 2025.
Analysis: “Israel-Iran Conflict Reveals Resilience and Vulnerability of GCC Economies.” Robert Mogielnicki, Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, June 30, 2025.
Analysis: “Israel-Iran Confrontation Tests Saudi Arabia’s Quest for Neutrality.” Arab Center in Washington, July 2, 2025.
Analysis: “Missiles Over Doha: Gulf States Rethink Security After U.S.–Iran Escalation.” Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, Gulf International Forum, July 3, 2025.
Analysis: “AI Investments in the Gulf: Opportunities and Surveillance Risks.” Metehan Durmaz, SMEX, May 19, 2025.
Research: Cole M. Bunzel “Refounding the Kingdom: Saudi Arabia from Islamism and Wahhabism to ‘Moderate’ Islam” Middle Eastern Studies, April 2, 2025.
Analysis: “Aramco and the Saudi Government Budget.” Tim Callen and Justin Alexander, Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, July 2, 2025.
Analysis: “The Gulf’s water crisis: Why cooperation is crucial — and complicated.” Naser Alsayed and John Calabrese, Middle East Institute, July 1, 2025.
Podcast: “The quality of life transformation in Saudi.” with Flow MENA CEO Fawaz Farooqui, The Majlis, June 29, 2025.
Analysis: “Global Energy Security: Western Dependence on Gulf Oil and the Role of Regional Mediation in Middle Eastern Conflicts.” GeorgeTown Journal of International Affairs, Talal Al-Emadi, July 8, 2025.
Analysis: “The GCC States and the US-Iran Dance Near the Abyss.” Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, Arab Center in Washington, July 2, 2025.
Analysis: “The IMF Comments on the Saudi Economy and Policy Framework.” Tim Callen, Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, July 1, 2025.Gulf Nashra Weekly Digest