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When Saudi-watchers get together, conversation will soon turn to questions that can become an obsession: who will be the next Saudi monarch, who will succeed him and when will this happen? The onset of illness associated with old age cannot help the

The cabinet approved draft laws on income tax and value-added tax (VAT) at a meeting on 3 May chaired by prime minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Nasser Bin Khalifa Al-Thani. The new income tax law replaces existing statutes which provide an exemption for non-Qatari investors from tax on profits of some companies and investment funds. The VAT law is in line with the wider Gulf Co-operation Council plan to impose the sales tax from 2018.

A 500 mcf/d floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) chartered from US-based Excelerate Energy was delivered to Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) in August, in a move to ensure gas-to-power supply by state utility Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Company (Adwec) during the peak summer season for electricity demand. The UAE’s second LNG import facility was moored off Ruwais, after it was filled at the Das Island plant operated by Adnoc’s Adgas subsidiary – which for years had sought not to divert LNG cargoes to meet domestic demand.

Sheikh Tahnoun Bin Zayed Al-Nahayan, in his capacity as head of the Tourism Development and Investment Company, has been in London to sign an MoU with the Prince of Wales’ School of Traditional Arts.

Three years into an ambitious plan to transform the Ministry of Defence (MoD)’s operational effectiveness, the programme is running into trouble as the initial enthusiasm dissipates. The transformation programme is an important element in the Vision 2030 strategy, as Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS – also defence minister ) regards the MoD as being in the vanguard of his plans.

Sharjah declared three days of official mourning starting on 8 May, following the death a day earlier of Sheikha Mariam Bint Salem Al-Suwaidi, wife of Ruler Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al-Qasimi’s late father. Funeral prayers were held after Isha prayer at King Faisal Mosque in Sharjah on the day she died, led by Sheikh Sultan. Sheikha Mariam’s body was then laid to rest in Al-Jubail cemetery.

Bahrain has succeeded in being removed from a European Union list of non-co-operative tax jurisdictions, after making commitments to Brussels that it will take action to address the EU’s concerns. The decision on 13 March came two months after the UAE had secured its removal from the list and four months after the two countries – along with 15 others – were first included. By convincing Brussels to remove them from the list, Bahrain and the UAE have avoided the risk of sanctions being imposed on them.

Qatar’s bid book envisages using 12 stadiums for Fifa World Cup 2022, of which nine grounds must be built as greenfield projects. The other three are existing grounds that need major upgrades.

Hossein Kazempour Ardebili, the long-serving Iranian governor at the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec), died in a Tehran hospital on 16 May, almost two weeks after going into a coma after suffering a brain haemorrhage. Opec secretary general Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo described him as “a cherished friend” in a letter of condolence sent to Iran’s petroleum minister Bijan Zangeneh.

The US Department of State has approved a possible $2bn foreign military sale to Saudi Arabia for five Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) Block 40/45 Mission Computing Upgrade systems and associated equipment, training and logistical support. In a statement on 12 August, the department said the upgrades were a “continuation of efforts to maintain interoperability with US and coalition forces”. The principal contractor will be The Boeing Company in Kent, Washington.

The death of Sheikh Saud Bin Abdullah Bin Sultan Al-Mualla of the ruling family of Umm Al-Quwain was announced on 22 July. He passed away at the family residence in Sharjah.

The shooting down of a Russian combat aircraft over Turkey on 24 November is a dangerous – if predictable – complication in efforts to build international consensus on a strategy to tackle the Islamic State (IS, or Daesh) challenge and to establish a sustainable peace in Syria. A peace process that stabilises Syria might eventually spur a virtuous circle of conflict resolution the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region requires as conflicts from Libya to Yemen drag on. A wider strategy that goes beyond bombardment is urgently needed to rebuild Mena’s fractured states.

Newly appointed Medina governor (GSN 939/4) Prince Faisal Bin Salman Bin Abdelaziz has launched a land distribution scheme – according to local media, 3,800 citizens will benefit from its first phase. Land has sometimes proved to be a contentious issue in Saudi Arabia, where key plots owned by high-ranking citizens have lain undeveloped for decades

Freedom of expression is a proud Kuwaiti boast in a region where most countries restrict public debate and media comment. The existence of a powerful and democratically elected parliament is only one facet of a society that can justifiably claim to stand out from its neighbours for the pluralism and vigour of its political culture.

Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal’s Kingdom Holding Company (KHC) has sold its 90% stake in the Four Seasons Resort in Langkawi, Malaysia for some $90m. Purchaser Leisure Ventures is an affiliate of Singapore-listed Hotel Properties. The billionaire prince called the transaction “yet another success for KHC’s value realisation strategy from growth market investments.”