Middle East

Maria Al Makahleh (Dubovikova) and Shehab Al Makahleh US President Donald Trump will host Gulf leaders separately in a bid to pave the way for American-Gulf summit scheduled for next spring, albeit in May in Camp David. This year’s meeting is different than those in previous years as almost …

Maria Dubovikova and Shehab Al-Makahleh It is significant for a Syrian opposition member to take a photo with a top American official. When the US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson held a meeting in Jordan’s capital, Amman, with the head of the Syrian Negotiations Commission, Nasr al-Hariri, and an accompanying …

Shehab Al-Makahleh Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, deputy premier and minister of defense’s visit to the US is very indicative at this time as it is the first for him as crown prince and it paves the way for proceeding ahead with economic plans in pursuance …

By Shehab Al Makahleh On March 18, Russians will go through the process of (re)electing their president Vladimir Putin for a fourth term as recent polls forecast. This foreseeable victory is not only affecting Russia but rather the world including the Middle East region which is close geographically …

By Giorgio Cafiero & Shehab Al Makahleh This month’s news about the United Kingdom’s (UK) consideration of a permanent military base in Kuwait at the Gulf state’s request marked an important development in London’s return East of Suez strategy. Although the idea is not new, ongoing developments in the …

By Shehab Al Makahleh The Middle East has entered the nuclear age. The existing strategic equilibrium in the Middle East is shifting as the region seeks a new balance, an equipoise which has been in perpetual flux over the past 30 years. The Arab-Israeli and the Iranian-Arab conventional …

By Shehab Al Makahleh The moment his plane landed in Moscow on February 15, Russian media broadcast the king while saying: “I am always very delighted and warmed by the opportunity to see my dear brother, President Putin, as a friend, a dear friend of his as well …

Maria Dubovikova The effectiveness of sanctions against Russia is debated all over the West. Some acknowledge that they do not work, and say it is time to launch a dialogue instead. Others argue that the sanctions have not achieved any visible results so far because they are insufficient, …

An Israeli Air Force F-16I fighter jet was shot down by Syrian air defense, while carrying out an early morning air strikes in the country on Saturday. Israel says the aircraft was carrying out air raids on a Iranian UAV control center in Syria that sent a unmanned …