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Against a backdrop of strained US-Bahrain relations, Crown Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al-Khalifa travelled to Washington in early June for a series of meetings with senior officials. The US has been supportive of the crown prince since the 2011 uprising, seeing him as the most amenable Al-Khalifa, and the most open to reform. Following his visit to Washington in May 2012, the US administration promised to resume arms sales to Bahrain, a move that was seen as an attempt to strengthen Salman’s position vis-à-vis the more hardline members of the ruling family. Relations with Manama have deteriorated since then, largely due to US criticism of human rights abuses and the slow pace of reform.

Bahrain
Issue 907 - 03 September 2011

Sandhurst Passing out

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The Sovereign’s Parade at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst was held on 12 August. There were several overseas cadets who passed out with a view to being commissioned into the armed forces of their countries

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Politics: Al-Thanis have ruled since the mid-19th century, reinforced by British recognition of their right to govern. 25 years after independence in 1971, the peninsula gained hugely in power, confidence and wealth with ‘Father Emir’ Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani’s drive to develop gas reserves. The population has boomed, from around 111,000 in 1970 to 2.2m-plus today (85%-90% expatriate), almost exclusively concentrated in Doha. Between 1995 and 2013, Sheikh Hamad and prime minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim remodelled Qatar as an ultra-modern independent-minded city state, funded by extreme wealth.

Qatar
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The French believe they can swing a much-needed sale of Rafale fighters as Kuwait enters a new procurement cycle. But even if planned deals are about renewal rather than expansion, MPs have tough questions for a government that is struggling to command confidence

Kuwait
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The annual trek to Davos seems to have dropped down the agenda for some Gulf leaders in recent years, but others still dutifully make their way into the Swiss mountains for the mix of politics and business that defines the annual gathering of World Economic Forum (WEF).Iraqi prime minister Haider Al-Abadi was there for a succession of meetings, including talks with Kurdistan Regional Government PM Nigervan Barzani, in which he reiterated Baghdad’s demand for total control of Kurdistan’s borders and oil exports.

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Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi’s 17-18 April visit to Riyadh was another step towards repositioning Iraq in the region, as Baghdad seeks to balance its close relations with Iran with its Gulf Co-operation Council neighbours and the United States. A more proactive regional policy is a positive counterpoint to government stasis in domestic policy as Abdul-Mahdi has been unable to complete his cabinet. With the two main groupings, Hadi Al-Amiri’s Bina (Construction) Bloc and Ammar Al-Hakim’s Islah (Reform and Construction) Bloc, have been unable to reach a consensus, four key ministerial posts remain vacant.

Iraq
Issue 850 - 27 March 2009

Manama unrest

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The mood in Bahrain was edgy in the run-up to the 26 March trial of 35 individuals including Haq leader Hassan Mushaima,

Bahrain
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The chairman of Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) Mustafa Sanalla – a major figure in efforts to keep the fractured North African state together – has written to the head of the parallel Al-Baida-based interim government Abdullah Al-Thinni, warning him not to use Qatar’s diplomatic crisis as a pretext for illegal oil exports. Much of the attempted deal-making related to NOC-East’s continued attempts to sell crude on its own account has involved Dubai-based oil brokers.

Qatar
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Marsha Lazareva seems to have gone to ground after a court convicted the Russian businesswoman and her colleague Saeed Dashti of fraud and money laundering in a complex business dispute. Lazareva was sentenced to 15 years in prison with hard labour on 11 November, having been found guilty on two charges of fraud and money laundering involving KGL Investments (of which she was chief executive) and its logistics investment vehicle The Port Fund. She was cleared of eight other charges.

Kuwait
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The rulers of four emirates and the de facto ruler of the wealthiest gathered on the Abu Dhabi corniche on 26 February for the official unveiling of a memorial to the late President Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan. Known as the Founder’s Memorial, it is the latest chapter in the ‘Year of Zayed’, which is being held to mark the centenary of Sheikh Zayed’s birth.Local analysts said it was another sign of how the federation’s ruling families were striving hard to imbue a sense of patriotism in Emiratis.

United Arab Emirates (UAE)
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The cabinet has approved a draft law to privatise Kuwait Airways – amending original plans to offer a 40% stake to the public with a new plan to give 40% to Kuwaiti citizens instead. Parliament initially approved privatisation plans in 2008, but they were delayed by restructuring at the troubled corporation (GSN 824/23, 826/3, 839/3).

Kuwait
Issue 1026 - 17 November 2016

Iran: Shipping under threat in courts

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National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC) has been unable to escape from European sanctions, despite the positive impact of the nuclear deal (see GSN view). In September, the European Court of Justice’s general court comprehensively rejected an NITC application for the dismissal of a European Council (EC) order from February 2015, which included it on the list of sanctioned entities. NITC had won a court victory in mid-2014 removing its name from the listing

Iran
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Omani acting undersecretary for diplomatic affairs Mohammed Bin Awadh Al-Hassan led a delegation to Tehran on 22 October to take part in the sixth session of the Iran-Oman strategic consultation committee. The following day he held talks with foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. There were no major new developments or agreements, but the meetings highlighted Oman’s continued willingness to talk to all sides in the region, even under pressure from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and as fresh sanctions are due to be imposed on Iran by the United States.

Oman
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The Foreign Affairs Committee (FAC) described defence co-operation as underpinning the entire UK-Saudi relationship. The UK is one of the three largest defence equipment suppliers to Saudi Arabia, alongside France and the US, supporting major defence sales directly through government-to-government contracts. “It is hard to obtain exact figures as to the volume of defence trade as the government restricts the supply of some information; however, the UK has granted export licences for almost £4bn ($6.5bn) worth of defence equipment over the last five years,” an FAC report on UK relations with Saudi Arabia and Bahrain released on 22 November said (see main story).

Saudi Arabia
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Islamic State (IS) militants were quick to claim responsibility for a suicide bombing at a packed Shiite mosque in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province on 22 May that killed 21 people and injured many more. It was the worst terrorist attack inside the kingdom since 2004 (see From the archive, page 13), and the first attack there to be claimed by IS, whose local branch issued a statement warning Shiites of “black days” ahead.The attack, during prayers at the Ali Ibn Abi Talib mosque in the village of Al-Qudayh, was followed on 29 May by another, also directed at Shiites worshipping at Friday prayers.

Saudi Arabia