Gulf & Energy Policy

Policy Analysis on Gulf & Energy Policy

Satellite image of the Red Sea region and the Arabian Peninsula

Don't Part the Red Sea: Formulating Holistic Policy Toward a Key Region

A former NAVCENT commander joins a panel of distinguished diplomats and experts to discuss why Washington should approach the region’s disparate economic, political, and security issues in a more integrated fashion.

Apr 19, 2021

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John Miller
Susan L. Ziadeh
Tibor Nagy
Elana DeLozier

Iranian sailors on board a naval vessel in the Strait of Hormuz

Brief Analysis

Iran and Israel’s Undeclared War at Sea (Part 2): The Potential for Military Escalation

Although both sides have sought to keep their tit-for-tat maritime attacks under control, they pose a substantial risk of miscalculation and escalation that could jeopardize international shipping.

Apr 13, 2021

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Farzin Nadimi

Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi meets Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman in Riyadh

Brief Analysis

China’s Foreign Minister Tours the Middle East: Outcomes and Implications

The trip echoed Beijing’s strategy of stringing together initiatives that seem insubstantial on their own but cumulatively threaten to undermine U.S. and regional interests.

Apr 9, 2021

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Ilari Papa

Brief Analysis

The Hamzah Affair: Context and Implications of Jordan’s Royal Crisis

The immediate crisis seems to have ended for now, but the stunningly public Hashemite feud is a reminder that Jordan’s stability needs tending and is not something to be taken for granted by Washington or Amman’s regional friends.

Apr 5, 2021

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Ghaith al-Omari
Robert Satloff

Maps & Graphics

Brief Analysis

Profile: Alwiyat al-Waad al-Haq

A facade group with unique ties to Kataib Hezbollah, Alwiyat al-Waad al-Haq has been used exclusively to claim or threaten attacks against Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Apr 1, 2021

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Crispin Smith
Hamdi Malik
Michael Knights

◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles

Brief Analysis

Yemen’s “Southern Hezbollah”: Implications of Houthi Missile and Drone Improvements

As the Iran-backed rebels make further range leaps that bring them closer to reaching Israel and other countries, the United States needs to start viewing them as a proliferation challenge beyond Yemen’s civil war.

Apr 1, 2021

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Michael Knights

Satellite map of wider Rea Sea with country names

In-Depth Reports

The Case for a Holistic U.S. Policy Toward the Emerging Red Sea Region

To promote stability and other U.S. interests, Washington must reshape its approach to this increasingly complex staging ground for global competition.

Apr 1, 2021

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Elana DeLozier

◆ Transition 2021

A man walks in a graveyard in Marib, Yemen

Brief Analysis

Saving the Yemen Peace Process by Blunting the Houthi Push for Marib

Losing Marib would discredit and debilitate the multilateral peace effort, so the United States should facilitate more energetic Saudi and Emirati support to the city’s defense.

Mar 17, 2021

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Michael Knights
Alex Almeida

Brief Analysis

The Saudi Air Defense Problem Is a U.S. Opportunity

Washington can do much to help the kingdom close its serious air defense gaps, whereas acquiring Russian S-400s would be militarily insufficient and strategically disastrous.

Mar 17, 2021

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Patrick Schmidt

Brief Analysis

Continued Houthi Strikes Threaten Saudi Oil and the Global Economic Recovery

Saudi Arabia used what Congress might consider “offensive weapons” to successfully defend major oil terminals, but a much more devastating attack is inevitable if Houthi missile and drone attacks persist.

Mar 12, 2021

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Michael Knights

Brief Analysis

Reshaping U.S. Force Posture in the Middle East

By adjusting carrier rotations, ISR capabilities, headquarters locations, and other key aspects of its posture, the Biden administration can contribute to regional security and self-sufficiency while still shifting toward great-power competition.

Mar 10, 2021

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Christine McVann

Articles & Testimony

Attack on Saudi Oil Facility Means New Headache for Biden

One obvious remedy involves asking Riyadh to end its production cutback, but any such request could be complicated by the administration’s recent friction with the crown prince.

Mar 8, 2021

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Simon Henderson

Assistant secretary of state David Schenker speaks at the Department of State in Washington, DC, alongside secretary of state Mike Pompeo

Video

Brief Analysis

Middle East Policy from Trump to Biden: Views from Inside the State Department’s Near East Bureau

The former assistant secretary of state in charge of the Middle East portfolio from 2019-2021 discusses his time in office and how the region’s challenges and opportunities are evolving at the start of the Biden administration.

March 10, 2021

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David Schenker
Robert Satloff

Vice President Joe Biden arrives in Saudi Arabia

Articles & Testimony

For Better or Worse: Which Way Will US-Saudi Relations Go Under Biden?

The new administration seems to regard Khashoggi’s death as merely the best known of the crown prince’s sins, but it is hard to see an alternative successor in the House of Saud.

Feb 26, 2021

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Simon Henderson

Articles & Testimony

Balancing Act: Biden Must Redefine the US-Saudi Relationship

The administration’s instinct to cancel Riyadh’s blank check is right, but engaging a flawed partner is not the same as confronting a determined adversary.

Feb 25, 2021

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Dennis Ross
Robert Satloff

Egyptian and Israeli flags along the Sinai border

Brief Analysis

Israel Secures Egyptian Gas Export Route

A rare visit by an Egyptian cabinet official marks a significant upgrade in bilateral energy ties, though questions remain about Palestinian, Gulf, and environmental issues.

Feb 23, 2021

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Simon Henderson

MbS, King Salman, Saudi map, fighter jet

In-Depth Reports

Defining a Mature, Balanced Relationship with Saudi Arabia

An Urgent Task for the Biden Administration

A revamped approach to the alliance should stay focused on shared goals, from ensuring a stable oil market to promoting a more tolerant version of Islam at home and abroad.

Feb 22, 2021

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Dennis Ross
Robert Satloff

◆ Transition 2021

Articles & Testimony

Blinken Picks Up the Phone to Firm Up Alliances—Except with Most Gulf Countries

The change of administrations and the realities of COVID-era diplomacy may give Gulf leaders a sense that they are being kept at a distance on key issues, including Iran’s nuclear program.

Feb 5, 2021

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Simon Henderson

Israeli and Palestinian children join the mayor of Jerusalem to release doves.

Video

Brief Analysis

U.S. Policy Toward Arab States, Palestinians, and Israel: Ideas and Approaches for the Biden Administration

Officials, business leaders, and experts explore the economic, political, and human impact of regional normalization efforts, including their potential to reinvigorate peacemaking with the Palestinians.

Feb 3, 2021

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Yousef Al Otaiba
Samer Khoury
Fleur Hassan-Nahoum
David Makovsky

Articles & Testimony

The Arab Spring Then and Now, Through the Prism of Public Opinion

A “survey of surveys” shows that from an intelligence and policy point of view, Arab public opinion is measurable and meaningful—assuming regional governments and Washington are paying proper attention to it.

Winter 2021

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David Pollock

Supported by the

Bernstein Program on Gulf and Energy Policy

The Washington Institute's Bernstein Program on Gulf and Energy Policy embodies the Institute's long-term research focus on the conservative Arab Gulf states -- Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE, and Oman -- and the key role these countries play collectively as a primary source of the world's oil and natural gas.

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