MULTIMEDIA

Arthur Michelino Vessels at the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, July 8, 2026. REUTERS In late May, with the talks to end the Iran war stalled, the US president threatened to blow up Oman if it did not, in his words, behave like everybody else. …

By Dov Lieber, Jared Malsin and Summer Said After bearing the brunt of Iran’s counterattack, the financial powerhouse is strengthening security cooperation with Israel and widening a rift with Saudi Arabia The new alignment is redrawing political fault lines between the Arab world and Israel that defined the …

The shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz exposes global energy vulnerabilities that have triggered price shocks, food risks, and supply disruptions.   The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has abruptly severed a fifth of global oil and LNG supply. Beyond spiking energy prices, a supply chain shock …

In the Gulf, water is not a given. It is engineered. Across a region where vast oil wealth meets extreme natural scarcity, life depends on a technological miracle: turning seawater into drinking water. Today, Gulf states produce nearly 40 percent of the world’s desalinated water—an achievement that has …

In a surprising development, President Vladimir Putin has indicated that Russia is prepared to donate $1 billion from its frozen U.S. assets to former President Donald Trump’s newly proposed Board of Peace—and an as-yet unspecified sum for Ukraine’s reconstruction. The move comes as Putin weighs Trump’s invitation to …

Bui Gia Ky On December 5, 2025, the Trump 2.0 administration released the new National Security Strategy (NSS). Unlike previous administrations, the 2025 NSS was published within the first year of the presidential term, reflecting the intentions and messages Washington seeks to send to the world about how …

Shalom Lipner President Trump’s steamrolling toward a lasting deal in Gaza could deliver a crowning blow to the Israeli government. A potent version of the Changing of the Guard, viewed annually by millions of spectators at Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle, is playing out presently on the British Empire’s …

As the inception of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve has reached a critical milestone, it is time to take stock of where it has been and where it is going. Beginning in November 2020, US transportation fuel prices climbed rapidly, rising to levels not seen in almost a decade. …

Alexander Langlois In the short term, normalization between Damascus and Jerusalem is not likely. But progress is still possible. In a major moment somewhat overshadowed by the Middle East’s competing headlines, Syria’s transitional government confirmed that it held a second trilateral meeting with Israeli and US officials on …