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  • S&P says Gulf countries need to raise $300 billion by 2021 – Report
     

    Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries will need to raise about $300 billion between 2018 and 2021, with Saudi Arabia having the largest financing requirements, according to rating agency S&P as reported in Reuters. According to a Reuters report, the S&P expects 70 percent of the $300 billion of combined funding needs to be raised through debt […]

     
  • Sec. Mattis, Saudi FM Al-Jubeir Meet; U.S. Calls for ‘Transparent Investigation’
     

    U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said on Sunday that he has met with Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister, Adel Al-Jubeir, and called for a “transparent investigation” into the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey, according to reports. Mattis said he met Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir during a conference in Bahrain on Saturday and discussed […]

     
  • Saudi, Kuwait, UAE Agree to Give Bahrain $10b
     

    Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates have agreed to give Bahrain $10 billion to “support the country’s funding requirements,” Reuters reports, as Bahrain embarks on a fiscal program aimed at eliminating its budget deficit by 2022. The move by Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the UAE “makes sense economically” because “any collapse of Bahrain’s currency […]

     
  • Saudi, UAE, Kuwait to Support Bahrain Economy after Downturn
     

    Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates will soon announce an “integrated program” to support Bahrain’s economic reforms and its fiscal stability, Reuters reports, citing a joint statement from the three Gulf states on Tuesday. Like other oil producing nations whose state finances are closely tied to oil prices, Bahrain’s economy was hit hard […]

     
  • Arab Leaders Gather in Dhahran to Unite on Regional Challenges
     

    Arab leaders gathered in Dhahran this weekend for the 29th session of the Arab Summit, held for the first time at the recently-opened King Abdulaziz International Cultural Center in Dhahran. The group called on Sunday for an international probe into the “criminal” use of chemical weapons in Syria and condemned what it saw as Iran’s […]

     
  • Saudi Officials, Current and Former, Downplay Oil Demand Concerns
     

    Saudi officials downplayed the risk of waning demand for oil as electric vehicles become more mainstream, according to comments made by Saudi Aramco’s CEO Amin Nasser and by former Minister of Petroleum Ali Al Naimi. According to comments at the CERAWeek by IHS Markit conference on Tuesday reported by Bloomberg, Nasser said he is “not […]

     
  • King Salman Opens Annual Janadriyah Festival as Kingdom Puts Saudi Culture On Display
     

    Saudi Arabia’s King Salman on Wednesday attended the opening ceremony of the Kingdom’s 32nd National Festival for Heritage and Culture, held in Janadriyah village on the northern outskirts of Riyadh.  The annual festival, known as the Janadriyah Festival, is a vibrant display of Saudi cultural traditions and heritage, and lasts 18 days. The festival’s first day saw King […]

     
  • Despite Progress, WEF Ranks Saudi Poorly on Gender Gap Index
     

    Saudi Arabia was among the lowest-ranked countries on in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap index, despite recently issuing new rules on women driving and other progress in the Kingdom. Saudi Arabia placed 138th out of 144 countries. The Kingdom’s Vision 2030 economic and social reform plans call for greater participation and empowerment of women in Saudi […]

     
  • Qatar Restores Full Diplomatic Relations with Iran
     

    Qatar restored full diplomatic relations with Iran on Thursday and promised to send its ambassador back to Tehran as the Gulf nation digs in against the demands of several Arab nations, including Saudi Arabia. According to the AP, in announcing its decision, Qatar made no mention of the diplomatic crisis roiling Gulf Arab nations since June, […]

     
  • Demands from Qatar Modified to ‘Six Broad Principles’
     

    Saudi Arabia and 3 Arab nations leading a boycott of Qatar are no longer insisting it comply with a list of 13 specific demands they tabled last month, according to reports. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt told reporters at the United Nations they now wanted it to accept “six broad principles.” […]

     

MUST-READS

  • Israeli president touts business ties on first Bahrain visit

    Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa met President Isaac Herzog on Sunday in the first visit by an Israeli head of state to the Gulf state since the countries forged ties two years ago and as a right-wing coalition government takes shape in Israel. Herzog, whose post is largely ceremonial, will then visit the United Arab Emirates, which also normalised ties with Israel in U.S.-brokered pacts known as the Abraham Accords and had already hosted the Israeli president.

  • Bahrain Left Out of Qatar World Cup’s Show of Middle East Unity

    Bahrain began to allow its citizens to visit Qatar freely only in July. Before that, would-be visitors had to secure special approval from the foreign ministry. Qataris seeking to visit Bahrain, meanwhile, had to obtain a visa, despite both countries being members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, a grouping that’s supposed to allow free movement within the bloc for citizens of any of its six nations.

  • Turkey-Bahrain Relations Getting Back on Track, as Erdogan Set to Visit Manama

    Two old regional partners forge ahead with renewed diplomatic, economic, and security ties, putting frictions related to Qatar boycott in the rearview mirror.

  • The Curious Case Of Bahrain’s Disappearing Voters

    Figures from the 2020 census – the most recent in the country – certainly suggest the number of voters should be far higher. The country’s total population that year was 1.5 million, of which 712,362 were Bahrainis. The number of local citizens aged 20 years or older (the threshold for voting) that year was 431,352. The population has probably grown a little since then, but even if it had not changed there should have been around 86,000 more people on the voter roll this year.

  • Pope Francis urges tolerance in first-ever visit to Bahrain

    Pope Francis II has paid a landmark visit to Bahrain as part of a government-sponsored interfaith conference to promote Catholic-Muslim dialogue. The trip took place amid protests organized by the families of Bahraini political prisoners. The Pope met with Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and the Grand Imam of Egypt’s Al-Azhar mosque Ahmed Mohamed El-Tayeb. The Pontiff also called on local officials to improve human rights.

  • First female Saudi pro tennis player wins Bahrain tournament

    The win brings al-Haqbani’s record to 22 wins to 21 losses. She is currently ranked 946 by the International Tennis Federation (ITF). Al-Haqbani previously defeated Israel’s Isabell Bilaus in the semi-final of this year’s tournament on Saturday. Born in 2004, al-Haqbani is the first female tennis player to represent Saudi Arabia at the professional level.

  • Bahrain set for elections amid calls for boycott, participation

    Bahrain is set to hold parliamentary elections next month amid parallel calls for a boycott and participation in the political process. The Nov. 12 vote is also approaching as thousands of Bahrainis remain excluded from political life under the country’s "Political Isolation Law.” This is while many names have been removed from electoral lists under the amendment to Law No. (57) of 2014, which specifies requirements that need to be met for political inclusion. These conditions include “previous participation in the electoral process” and not being “deprived or exempt from exercising rights" by the authorities.

  • Iran Claims Bahrain to Shake Up Nuclear Talks and Rebuff Israel

    History shows Iran’s demand is baseless. In November 1957, under the shah, Iran formally laid claim to the island, a British protectorate since 1861. Tehran declared it a province and awarded it two parliamentary seats (which were never claimed). However, after heavy British and US pressure and a United Nations survey showing overwhelming public support in Bahrain for independence, in 1971 Iran recognized the island nation as a sovereign state.

  • Bahrain and Saudi Arabia lead in contactless payments

    Bahrain has been a leader in contactless payments, with a penetration rate of 75% last month alongside a 13% jump in ecommerce, reflecting a shift in behavior among consumers who previously transacted primarily in cash or were moderate card spenders. The cashless payment surge in Bahrain follows Saudi Arabia, which climbed the charts as the leading country in contactless payments, with a penetration rate of 94% of all digital transactions compared to 70% in other developed countries earlier this month.

  • The Islamic Republic Commemorates Bahrain’s Independence From Britain 

    While the regime’s attacks against its immediate predecessor, and Iran’s royal family in exile, are routine and serve the purpose of legitimizing Iran’s present rulers, Bahrain’s separation from Iran, which has hitherto been a political nonissue, is gradually turning into a main propaganda staple, likely to cause further tensions in Tehran’s relations with Manama.