Gulf Countries

Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei urges Gulf to confront 'real enemy'

Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei calls for Muslim unity and mutual defence, urging Gulf states to unite against what he described as their "real enemy"

India, Gulf Cooperation Council discuss next steps on free trade agreement

India has reviewed the negotiations on a free trade agreement with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), as the country's ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Vipul, held wide-ranging talks with the secretary general of the six-nation bloc, Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi, in Riyadh. The meeting took place on Sunday, where both sides discussed ways to strengthen India-GCC relations, exchanged views on regional and international developments, and reviewed preparations for a ministerial meeting scheduled next month, the GCC Secretariat said in a statement. The meeting assumes significance as India and the GCC resumed negotiations in February for a comprehensive trade agreement aimed at boosting bilateral trade and investment, even though the talks were temporarily stalled in June because of the West Asia crisis. The GCC comprises Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and was established in 1981 as a political, economic and security grouping. During Sunday's meeting, In

Iran threatens Gulf states of retaliation if US launches new strikes

Iran warned Gulf states of retaliation if US strikes resume, as Israel-Lebanon clashes flared and shipping firms rejected a proposed Hormuz transit arrangement

US-Iran war: Why desalination plants are critical to Gulf and under threat

Iranian strikes have exposed the Gulf's dependence on desalination plants. Here's why these facilities are vital, vulnerable during conflict, and what a disruption could mean for the region

Why US strikes on southern Iran are putting the Gulf's sea lanes on edge

Fighting is spreading across West Asia as the US intensifies strikes on southern Iran, Tehran retaliates across the Gulf, and key energy and shipping routes come under growing threat

What Wall Street never understood about Gulf investors and their priorities

Wall Street must move beyond treating the Gulf as one market as Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar chart increasingly divergent investment paths

Gulf crude exports jump in July but shipments slowing on latest hostilities

Gulf crude exports hit their highest level since before the Iran conflict, but renewed fighting is slowing tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz

Gulf nations race to build oil routes beyond Hormuz amid Iran conflict

As tensions with Iran expose the risks of the Strait of Hormuz, Gulf nations are investing in new pipelines and ports to secure oil exports and reduce dependence on the key waterway

Trump steps back from proposal for Hormuz fees in favour of Gulf deals

Donald Trump abandoned plans to impose a 20 per cent fee on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, saying he would instead seek trade and investment deals with Gulf states

Steady, stable as she goes: India and the economic fallout of Gulf conflict

The Gulf conflict tested one kind of resilience; the years ahead will test others. India met the first test in good order. That is a reason for quiet confidence - and for getting on with the next

Rubio hails US-Gulf Arab unity despite region's concerns about Iran deal

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday that relations between the United States and its Gulf Arab partners are rock solid, despite fears by some of them that they might be left out of discussions aimed at ending the war with Iran. Rubio used a three-day, three-nation trip to the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Bahrain this week to try to convince all the members of the Gulf Cooperation Council that the Trump administration does indeed have their backs in negotiations to end the war President Donald Trump and Israel launched on Feb. 28. That conflict sharply curtailed the region's oil exports and saw several Gulf countries take direct retaliatory Iranian missile and drone hits. "They've shared with us some very concrete concerns, ideas," Rubio said in Bahrain, the last stop on the trip. "And when I say concern, the biggest concern is that they really just want to be informed every step along the way as we enter these negotiations at both the technical and political ...

As Hormuz reopens, Gulf oil fields gear up for a restart visible from space

Energy executives across the Gulf are working to restore oil production and shipping after the US-Iran interim peace deal reopened the world's most critical oil transit route

Can Modi-Trump meet on at G7 summit help reset strained India-US relations?

Geopolitical tensions in West Asia are driving Gulf-based NRIs towards Indian term insurance plans, attracted by lower premiums and GST exemptions

War effect: Gulf-based NRIs double down on Indian term life plans

Geopolitical tensions in West Asia are driving Gulf-based NRIs towards Indian term insurance plans, attracted by lower premiums and GST exemptions

MEA summons US envoy again over attacks on ships carrying Indians

India lodged a strong protest with the US over attacks on commercial vessels carrying Indian seafarers, while the UN and Iran condemned the incidents

Iran could trigger 'nuclear arms race' in West Asia, says J D Vance

US Vice President J D Vance has said Iran having an atomic weapon would trigger a "nuclear arms race" worldwide and asserted that the US was "locked and loaded" to restart military operations if Tehran failed to reach a peace deal. Vance's remarks at a press conference at the White House on Tuesday came a day after President Donald Trump put off the decision to resume strikes on Iran at the request of Arab nations, including Qatar and the UAE, who said that Tehran was being "reasonable" in peace talks. "We think the Iranians want to make a deal. The president of the United States has asked us to negotiate in good faith. And that's exactly what we've done," the vice president said. But Vance warned that diplomacy will not come at the cost of Trump's key demand that Iran never obtain a nuclear weapon. "So as the president just told me, we're locked and loaded," Vance said, adding that he had a meeting with Trump before coming to the press briefing. "We don't want to go down that ...

Luxury giants slump as West Asia demand seizes up due to prolonged war

Shoppers in the West Asia are some of the world's biggest spenders, splashing out at retail hubs like Dubai and other luxury destinations including Paris and Milan