For years, the United Arab Emirates was portrayed as the region’s master of “quiet diplomacy”—a state that preferred economic leverage, discreet mediation, and influence exercised behind closed doors. That image no longer holds. The open military confrontation with Saudi Arabia in Yemen marks a decisive rupture with the …

The quiet meeting in Islamabad between the air force chiefs of Pakistan and Bangladesh may prove to be anything but routine. Beneath the formal language of defence cooperation and aircraft sales lies a potentially significant realignment in South Asia’s military and political landscape. At the center of the …

Hiba Malik Across Asia, governments are pouring billions into artificial intelligence, viewing technological advancement as a path to strategic autonomy and economic resilience. Yet, with massive AI and chip investments, Asia is becoming less, not more, secure in the technology politics. Despite colossal investments by Asia, the most …

Scott Caldwell Gijs Tuinman, the Netherlands’ State Secretary of Defence, recently challenged industry leaders to propose a domestic deep precision strike (DPS) cruise missile with a range of over 1,000 km to rival the American Tomahawk, arguing, ‘Long-range deterrence can no longer be outsourced.’ This move is unexpected …

Hosein Mortada Amid the relentless wars and upheavals shaking the Middle East, a pressing question resurfaces: are today’s conflicts—particularly in Lebanon, Iraq, Iran, and Yemen—the product of isolated local struggles, or are they fragments of a broader landscape shaped by complex international calculations? In this context, Michael Brant’s …

Dr. Ju Hyung Kim For much of the post-Cold War era, defense procurement in the Middle East followed a relatively familiar pattern. The US offered advanced weapon systems and security guarantees, while European countries supplied niche capabilities, and Russia and China filled the vacuum when Western sales were …

The Trump-Netanyahu summit in Washington in the final days of 2025 was not merely a courtesy visit for the region but the announcement of a new geopolitical design. While thanking Netanyahu for the “Israel Peace Prize”he received, Trump signaled that he was preparing the region for a new …

Yemen’s civil war has escalated after a separatist movement backed by the United Arab Emirates gained ground in the south, causing rifts within the Saudi-led coalition that was formed to combat the Iran-aligned Houthi group. The conflict began in late 2014 when the Houthi movement, known as Ansar …

Iran’s policy toward Iraq since the 2003 US invasion has been shaped far more by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps than by Iran’s civilian diplomats. Under Khamenei’s rule the IRGC became the regime’s powerhouse. Mohsen Sazegara, an exiled Iranian dissident who helped found the IRGC, describes the Guard …