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United States

Iraq

Israel

Kuwait

Oman

Qatar

Saudi Arabia

United Arab Emirates

Iranian-made satellite carriers (left) and missiles (right) are displayed in front of the Holy Defense Museum in Tehran, Iran, on Sept. 20, 2020.

Military & Security

The integrated air and missile defense system laid out in the proposed DEFEND Act could entice Saudi Arabia to deepen normalization with Israel.

U.S. Lawmakers Unveil a Plan to Shield Middle East Allies From Iranian Aggression

U.S.-Iran Relations

Members of Kuwait’s stateless Bidoon community protest to demand citizenship and other rights in Jahra, northwest of Kuwait City, in December 2011. 

Politics

Rebalancing Power in the Middle East

Broken Contracts in the Middle East

Compared with Qatar and the UAE, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia will be much slower to naturalize the descendants of desert nomads living within their borders.

What Greater GCC Citizenship Means for the Arab Gulf’s Stateless Residents

The Saudi Survival Strategy

Snapshots

Bahrain

Lebanon

A portrait of Lebanese Information Minister George Kordahi is seen on a billboard in Sanaa, Yemen, on Oct. 31, 2021. 

Economics

By alienating wealthy Arab Gulf states like Saudi Arabia, a Lebanese official’s show of support for Iran-backed proxies risks deepening his country’s financial crisis.

A Row Over Yemen Sends Lebanon-Gulf Ties Spiraling

The Yemen Civil War

Iran's Arc of Influence

Angola

Nigeria

Russia

Algeria

Iran

OPEC headquarters on April 4, 2013, in Vienna. OPEC+'s decision to maintain production levels will bolster the idea that oil markets are entering a supercycle, contributing to concerns about rising inflation.

Energy

OPEC+'s decision to maintain production levels will bolster the idea that oil markets are entering a supercycle, contributing to concerns about rising inflation.

OPEC+ Stays the Course, Driving up Oil Price, Inflation Expectations

An oil tanker sails on Maracaibo Lake in Maracaibo, Venezuela, on March 15, 2019. OPEC'S relevance will slowly decline over the next two decades as the global transition from fossil fuels accelerates and oil's dominance in the transportation sector is diminished.

OPEC'S relevance will slowly decline over the next two decades as the global transition from fossil fuels accelerates and oil's dominance in the transportation sector is diminished.

As Oil's Importance Fades, So Will OPEC

Egypt

Qatar’s defense minister (center) waits for the arrival of his Turkish counterpart to meet with the prime minister of Libya’s U.N.-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli on Aug. 17, 2020. 

The easing of the Qatar blockade may help resolve the current GCC crisis, but it won't unite Arab Gulf states’ divergent regional policies.

A Potential Breakthrough in Qatar Paves the Way for GCC Reconciliation 

The Libyan Civil War

Security

Kuwaiti legislators attend a parliamentary session at the National Assembly building in Kuwait City, Kuwait, on Oct. 20, 2020. 

Environment, Science & Technology

The opposition now controls nearly half of Kuwait’s National Assembly, setting the stage for delayed reforms and political gridlock. 

What a Split Parliament Means for Kuwait’s Financial Future

COVID-19

A man walks past the flags of the countries attending the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit in Kuwait City, Kuwait, on Dec. 5, 2017. 

A Crude Recovery

The proposed tax for wealthy Omani citizens underscores the growing pressure on GCC states to reduce their heavy reliance on oil and gas revenue.

Oman’s New Income Tax Will Offer a Test Case for the Arab Gulf 

The Sept. 29 passing of Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, longtime ruler of Kuwait, could shift Kuwait's staid economic and foreign policies.

Will the Passing of Kuwait's Emir Signal a Policy Shift for the Gulf Arab Country?

The kingdom’s pandemic-related financial woes may force its leader to suspend the country’s gridlocked legislature in order to pass a crucial debt law, and potentially other overdue reforms.

In Kuwait, a Blocked Debt Law Portends a Dissolved Parliament

Guidance

Pakistan

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended Stratfor articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: Eid Amid COVID-19, U.S. Economic Developments

A desalination plant in Tel Aviv, Israel. 

Cyber

The shift to trying to physically damage targets via cyberattacks threatens local and Western companies in the Mideast, and critical infrastructure worldwide.

Iran Appears Poised to Go on the Cyber Offensive

Israel's Survival Strategy

Voters reelected 37 of the 50 lawmakers in Kuwait's parliament on June 6, in what was the Arab Gulf state's third election in as many years amid an ongoing political stalemate in the country, the AP has reported.

Kuwait: Legislative Election Results in Little Change, Portending More Gridlock

Kuwait's Constitutional Court annulled the 2022 legislative election results and said it would reinstate the 2020 National Assembly due to the "invalidity of the electoral process," AP reported on March 19.

Kuwait: Court Annuls 2022 Legislative Election Results, Denying Opposition a Majority

Social Issues

Kuwait's crown prince accepted the government's resignation after the country's Sept. 29 parliamentary elections, Reuters reported Oct. 2.

Kuwait: Government Formation to Begin Following Electoral Victory for Opposition

Kuwaiti Crown Prince Sheikh Meshal Al Ahmed Al Jaber Al Sabah appointed Emir Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Sabah's son, Sheikh Ahmad Nawaf Al Sabah, to the post of prime minister in a royal decree that also asked Sheikh Ahmad to form a new Cabinet for parliamentary approval, Bloomberg reported July 24.

Kuwait: Crown Prince Names Emir's Son as Prime Minister

Kuwaiti Crown Prince Sheikh Meshal Al Ahmed Al Jaber announced the dissolution of the National Assembly and called for early elections, AP reported June 22.

Kuwait: Parliament to Dissolve, Portending New Legislative Elections

The Kuwait Petroleum Corporation is seeking to borrow up to $1 billion for a period of 13 years from foreign banks, including HSBC Bank USA and JPMorgan Chase & Co., according to a parliamentary review document circulating in the media, Zawya reported June 7.

Kuwait: National Petroleum Company to Borrow up to $1 Billion

Yemen

Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Yemen said they will return their ambassadors to Lebanon, U.S. News & World Report reported April 7.

Lebanon: Saudi, Kuwaiti and Yemeni Ambassadors Return to Beirut

Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Khalid al-Sabah submitted his resignation to the crown prince to avoid the planned April 6 no-confidence vote that would have seen him voted out, the AP reported April 5.

Kuwait: Prime Minister's Resignation Deepens Political Divides

Afghanistan

Antigua and Barbuda

Luxembourg

South Sudan

A view of the Register in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

Argentina

Armenia

Australia

Lithuania

Covering an area that spans the entire width of the continent beginning at the Sahara Desert and ending at the southernmost tip of South Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa is home to countless cultures, languages, religions, plants, animals and natural resources.

Barbados

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Maldives

Malta

Ukraine

Belize

Botswana

Brunei Darussalam

India

North Macedonia

Tajikistan

Bhutan

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Burkina Faso

Cambodia

Germany

The President palace in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

The administrative center of the Gakh region of Azerbaijan, located at the foot of the southern slope of the Greater Caucasus, on the river Kurhumchai.

Brazil

Burundi

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Finland

Nepal

Cameroon

Canada

Georgia

Jordan

Mir Castle in the Minsk region of Belarus.

Cabo Verde

Chile

Federated States of Micronesia

Liechtenstein

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Central African Republic

Colombia

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Latvia

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Chad

Costa Rica

Indonesia

Libya

Comoros

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Czech Republic

Japan

A horse grazes in front of Kara-Kul lake in the Chon-Ak-Suu valley, 300 kilometers southeast of Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan.

Morocco

Cote d'Ivoire

Denmark

Dominica

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Democratic Republic of the Congo

Dominican Republic

Laos

Palestinian Territories

Djibouti

Ecuador

Holy See (Vatican City)

Malaysia

El Salvador

Equatorial Guinea

Greece

Marshall Islands

Eritrea

France

Grenada

Mongolia

The emirate of Kuwait is on the northwestern edge of the Persian Gulf, nestled between Iraq and Saudi Arabia and narrowly divided by land from Iran. Iraq's border blocks Kuwait from the fertile river lands of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, leaving the country a hot, waterless desert with no natural year-round rivers or lakes. Kuwait is, however, rich in hydrocarbons beneath its largely sandy desert.    Because of their country's low rainfall and poor soil, Kuwaitis used to live off pearling and trade and were usually dominated by whoever controlled Iraq to the north. That often made Kuwait a borderland of empires, as its settled population interacted with merchants and traders out of Iraq and Iran and the Bedouins who traveled up from Arabia. These interactions left Kuwait's population divided between Bedouins, Sunnis and Shiites.    After World War I broke up the Ottoman Empire, Kuwait achieved independence as a British protectorate. The discovery of hydrocarbons in the 1930s allowed Kuwait to rapidly transform its economy and modernize. But it still faced the challenge of needing access to trade routes and protection from powers in Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Iran. At various times, Kuwait leans on different neighbors to balance them against one another, as it did when it aligned with Iraq during the Iran-Iraq War. Most recently, Kuwait has relied on its alliance with the United States to ensure its independence and access to global trade routes via the Strait of Hormuz.      To ensure its security, Kuwait must have a sponsor, whether in the region or beyond it, who sees value in its independence and can guarantee its access to trade. And it must also balance its divided population, whose divisions can pull the country towards different neighbors at different times. 

Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah approved the formation of a new Cabinet led by Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Khalid al-Sabah, KUNA reported Dec. 28.

Kuwait: Government Approves New Cabinet That Could Propose Financial Reforms

SITUATION REPORTS

Kuwait: Legislative Election Results in Little Change, Portending More Gridlock

Kuwait: Court Annuls 2022 Legislative Election Results, Denying Opposition a Majority

Kuwait: Government Formation to Begin Following Electoral Victory for Opposition

Kuwait: Crown Prince Names Emir's Son as Prime Minister

Kuwait: Parliament to Dissolve, Portending New Legislative Elections

Kuwait: National Petroleum Company to Borrow up to $1 Billion

Lebanon: Saudi, Kuwaiti and Yemeni Ambassadors Return to Beirut

Kuwait: Prime Minister's Resignation Deepens Political Divides

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