https://www.scmp.com/rss/523481/feed The latest news and top stories on the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), a Riyadh-based intergovernmental political and economic union. The GCC was established in 1981 to foster cooperation, integration and unity among its six Arab member states in the Persian Gulf. Its primary mission encompasses economic integration, including a common market and customs union, alongside significant security and military coordination, notably the Peninsula Shield Force. The GCC also focuses on political... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Asad Ullah Asad Ullah On April 28, the United Arab Emirates informed the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) it was leaving. Three days’ notice. No call to Riyadh beforehand, apparently. The grievance about production quotas was years old: Abu Dhabi had threatened to quit in 2021. What’s changed has nothing to do with the barrel count. It is about who underwrites Abu Dhabi’s security when it acts on a decision Riyadh opposes. After Iran struck UAE infrastructure, Abu Dhabi sent only a foreign... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3352666/why-uaes-opec-exit-spells-beginning-end-gulf-unity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3352666/why-uaes-opec-exit-spells-beginning-end-gulf-unity?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 May 2026 21:30:05 +0000 Mohamad Zreik Mohamad Zreik For decades, the Strait of Hormuz has been a narrow passage with a big footprint. Whenever it comes under tension, the world is reminded that energy security is less a policy construct than an everyday reality for Asia’s economies, factories and prices. For China, Japan, South Korea, India and Southeast Asia, it has always been more than just a Middle Eastern problem. It is an Asian economic issue. This is why we should not interpret the latest Gulf tensions solely in terms of naval forces,... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3352077/how-china-gulf-ties-can-turn-energy-vulnerability-sustainability?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3352077/how-china-gulf-ties-can-turn-energy-vulnerability-sustainability?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 May 2026 21:30:05 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain The United Arab Emirates is expected to continue making high-risk geopolitical moves with potentially high rewards, following its exit from the Opec oil cartel, as the small but extremely wealthy Gulf state strives to become a global power. Framed by Emirati officials as an orientation towards strengthening economic autonomy, the UAE’s decision to leave the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) on Tuesday coincided with the downgrading of its diplomatic participation in the Gulf... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352207/uaes-opec-exit-signals-aim-accelerate-foreign-policy-diversification?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352207/uaes-opec-exit-signals-aim-accelerate-foreign-policy-diversification?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 02 May 2026 09:00:12 +0000 Vanessa Cai Vanessa Cai The United Arab Emirates’ decision to leave a global cartel of major oil-exporting countries is seen to reflect a widening fracture within the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). The UAE announced on Tuesday that it would leave the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) and the wider Opec+ alliance, effective on Friday. The country joined the group in 1971, though one of its emirates – Abu Dhabi – joined in 1967. The UAE’s Ministry of Infrastructure said in a statement that the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351896/uaes-exit-opec-could-bring-even-bigger-trouble-chinese-expert?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351896/uaes-exit-opec-could-bring-even-bigger-trouble-chinese-expert?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Apr 2026 22:00:16 +0000 Orange Wang Orange Wang As the US-Israeli war on Iran enters a third month, there is no sign of a break in the deadlock between Washington and Tehran. These are the main takeaways from what happened overnight. What did Trump say? US President Donald Trump told his aides to prepare for an extended blockade of Iran, The Wall Street Journal reported in Asian early trading hours on Wednesday, citing US officials. And after welcoming Britain’s King Charles in Washington on Tuesday, he lashed out at German Chancellor... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351769/wartime-iran-trumps-fury-and-uae-heres-what-happened-overnight?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351769/wartime-iran-trumps-fury-and-uae-heres-what-happened-overnight?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Apr 2026 00:43:43 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain Amid the rubble of the US-Israel war on Iran, a new Middle East appears to be taking shape as a constellation of regional powers jockey for a seat at the table. Led by Turkey and Saudi Arabia, the grouping stretches from the Gulf across the Caucasus to Central and South Asia, binding together countries with overlapping interests, interlocking partnerships and a shared conviction: that the post-war order should not be dictated exclusively by the US-Israel alliance or Iran and its battered but... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351335/middle-easts-new-power-brokers-pakistan-turkey-saudi-arabia-egypt-unite?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351335/middle-easts-new-power-brokers-pakistan-turkey-saudi-arabia-egypt-unite?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 25 Apr 2026 05:30:08 +0000 Burak Elmali Burak Elmali The Iran war has delivered a systemic shock to the Gulf’s security architecture and economic miracle. Two taboos were rapidly broken. The Strait of Hormuz, which carries roughly one-fifth of global oil consumption and close to a quarter of seaborne crude, was paralysed for sustained periods. Iranian strikes reached deep into Gulf territory, hitting ports, energy terminals and airports with a frequency that exceeded attacks on Israel. War-risk insurance premiums and tanker charter rates surged... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3350366/china-can-offer-gulf-states-more-just-security-umbrella?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3350366/china-can-offer-gulf-states-more-just-security-umbrella?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 12:30:09 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain As Islamabad prepares to host a second round of negotiations between the United States and Iran, Pakistani mediators are seeking ways to extricate the Gulf monarchies from the conflict, according to a well-placed diplomatic source. While the success of those efforts depends largely on the outcome of talks that US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday could resume by the end of the week, Pakistan’s mediation has produced a second confidence-building phone call in a week between the Iranian and... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3350175/pakistan-seeks-shield-gulf-states-us-iran-talks-set-resume?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3350175/pakistan-seeks-shield-gulf-states-us-iran-talks-set-resume?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Apr 2026 10:00:04 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain The Gulf’s six Arab monarchies, battered by Iranian drones and missiles because of a war they never wanted, are watching with trepidation to see what Pakistan-hosted US-Iran negotiations will yield for their collective future. After China and Russia vetoed the Gulf Cooperation Council’s bid to attain UN Security Council approval for “defensive” measures to force open the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week, analysts say the GCC states have little sway over what is about to transpire in... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3349655/us-iran-talks-leave-gulf-states-edge-about-price-peace?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3349655/us-iran-talks-leave-gulf-states-edge-about-price-peace?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Apr 2026 10:00:18 +0000 Chenjie Song Chenjie Song On April 7, less than two hours before US President Donald Trump’s declared deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz expired, a two-week ceasefire was announced after being floated by Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. The deal followed Iran’s delivery of a 10-point proposal to the United States through Pakistani mediators on April 6. According to Iranian officials, Tehran’s acceptance came after a last-minute intervention by China. The breakthrough came seven days after China and... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3349462/chinas-role-iran-us-ceasefire-reflects-its-strategic-distance?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3349462/chinas-role-iran-us-ceasefire-reflects-its-strategic-distance?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Apr 2026 12:30:09 +0000 Junjie Wang Junjie Wang – https://www.scmp.com/plus/economy/article/3348877/strait-hormuz-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/economy/article/3348877/strait-hormuz-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 Apr 2026 04:26:39 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain Pakistan is hoping that its role in building a diplomatic off-ramp from the US-Israel war on Iran will enable it to become a key actor in the Middle East after the conflict ends, analysts say. If Islamabad can deliver without being sucked into the maelstrom, it can capitalise on its position as peacemaker by signing defence deals with Gulf monarchies and attracting investment from them to strengthen its weak economy. This will help finance Pakistan’s military expansion for its envisioned new... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3348621/pakistan-eyes-gulf-investment-defence-deals-return-playing-peacemaker-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3348621/pakistan-eyes-gulf-investment-defence-deals-return-playing-peacemaker-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Apr 2026 05:21:16 +0000 Chenjie Song Chenjie Song Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s press conference at the annual “two sessions” on March 8 was the Chinese government’s most authoritative statement on the war on Iran since strikes began on February 28. Wang called the war one that “should not have happened” and offered five principles for resolution: respect for sovereignty, rejection of force, non-interference in internal affairs, political settlement and goodwill among major powers. Diplomatic language aside, Wang named no concrete enforcement... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347043/when-it-comes-persian-gulf-chinas-top-priority-economics?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347043/when-it-comes-persian-gulf-chinas-top-priority-economics?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Mar 2026 01:30:10 +0000 Chietigj Bajpaee Chietigj Bajpaee When the late Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe gave his landmark speech in the Indian parliament in August 2007 referring to the “confluence of the two seas”, he gave birth to the concept of the Indo-Pacific as a strategic space connecting East and South Asia. But the latest conflict in the Middle East illustrates how South Asia’s interconnectedness increasingly lies to its west. Some of these connections are deeply rooted in history: South Asia is home to the world’s largest Muslim population... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3346933/why-middle-east-volatility-presents-enhanced-risk-south-asia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3346933/why-middle-east-volatility-presents-enhanced-risk-south-asia?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Mar 2026 21:30:07 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain Three weeks into the Iran war, tit-for-tat escalations on multiple fronts have dragged the Middle East to the brink of the region-wide conflict that its governments have repeatedly warned about – and tried to avert – since Hamas attacked Israel in October 2023. Israel has launched a ground invasion of southern Lebanon in recent days, after Hezbollah entered the conflict in response to the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Iraq has been turned into a shooting range, as... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3347363/iran-war-nears-3-front-tipping-point-gulf-energy-hubs-burn?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3347363/iran-war-nears-3-front-tipping-point-gulf-energy-hubs-burn?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Mar 2026 04:30:08 +0000 Shi Jiangtao Shi Jiangtao For decades, the US security umbrella was the bedrock underpinning the Gulf states’ prosperity and stability. Today, Iranian missiles and drones have paralysed the Strait of Hormuz and hit civilian airports, ports, hotels and refineries across every Gulf country, despite thousands of American troops and advanced interceptors on the ground. The armed conflict has forced the region to confront a stark new reality. A Chinese scholar argued that the US-Israel war on Iran and ensuing Hormuz crisis... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3347189/severely-damaged-how-us-israel-war-iran-decoupling-gulf-security?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3347189/severely-damaged-how-us-israel-war-iran-decoupling-gulf-security?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Mar 2026 14:00:09 +0000 Orange Wang Orange Wang Iran’s air strikes on the Gulf states have turned the spotlight onto China’s dilemma in trying to develop long-term relations with those nations but also with their arch-rival Iran. Strikes on all six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members in retaliation for US and Israeli attacks on Iran have hit both American military assets stationed in those countries and civilian infrastructure, including oil refineries. As oil and gas producers, they are also bearing the brunt of the effective closure of... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3346919/can-china-still-maintain-good-relations-gulf-states-and-iran-fighting-escalates?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3346919/can-china-still-maintain-good-relations-gulf-states-and-iran-fighting-escalates?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Mar 2026 04:00:10 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain Since the Iran war began late last month, it has threatened shipping across the Middle East’s two most important maritime chokepoints – the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb – through which much of Asia’s energy imports and manufactured exports flow. For Gulf states and their major trading partners in Asia, the conflict is forcing a hard question: what, if anything, can protect supply chains if US security guarantees can no longer be taken for granted? Analysts say the usual answers –... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3346627/iran-war-exposes-fragility-gulf-asia-supply-chains?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3346627/iran-war-exposes-fragility-gulf-asia-supply-chains?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Mar 2026 06:00:16 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji When the alert arrives on his phone, Yashwant Deshmukh knows exactly what to do. The Dubai-based political analyst moves away from the windows, waits for the second message confirming the missile has been intercepted, and then goes back to work. “It has become a drill,” he said. For the roughly 9 million Indians living and working across the Gulf, the war on Iran has shattered one of the region’s most durable illusions: that cities like Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Manama would remain apart from... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3346524/iran-war-fallout-puts-9-million-indian-workers-line-fire?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3346524/iran-war-fallout-puts-9-million-indian-workers-line-fire?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Mar 2026 08:00:12 +0000 Zhao Ziwen Zhao Ziwen As missiles fly throughout the Middle East, China is walking a diplomatic tightrope between strategic partner Iran and the Gulf Cooperation Council states, with whom it has deep economic ties. All six GCC members have been struck as Tehran has widened its retaliation for US and Israeli attacks that killed its supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and senior officials. Its strikes have also expanded beyond United States’ assets to include landmark buildings and airports, causing death and... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3345443/china-must-find-path-between-iran-and-gulf-states-tehran-strikes-across-middle-east?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3345443/china-must-find-path-between-iran-and-gulf-states-tehran-strikes-across-middle-east?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Mar 2026 11:19:08 +0000 Sameed Basha Sameed Basha Many American wars begin with the assumption that brute force will lead to a swift and decisive victory. While the US military is highly effective at conventional deterrence, it has consistently struggled to defeat adversaries employing asymmetric tactics. In conflicts such as Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan and Yemen, Washington repeatedly underestimated its adversaries by assessing their strength based on their ability to fight conventionally. Iran represents the most dangerous iteration of... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3345222/us-war-iran-isnt-likely-go-planned?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3345222/us-war-iran-isnt-likely-go-planned?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Mar 2026 12:30:08 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain Since Iran came under US and Israeli attack on Saturday, its retaliatory missile and drone barrages have struck Saudi oil refineries, the world’s largest LNG plant in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates’ trade and transit infrastructure. Now the Gulf is signalling it has had enough of just absorbing the hits. None of the six Arab monarchies of the Gulf Cooperation Council wanted this war, analysts say. They had spent months trying to mediate a way out of the confrontation, warning of precisely... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3345259/gulf-states-take-fight-iran-missiles-target-oil-gas-and-trade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3345259/gulf-states-take-fight-iran-missiles-target-oil-gas-and-trade?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Mar 2026 07:47:50 +0000 Ambrose Li,Kevin Li Ambrose Li,Kevin Li Adverse economic impacts from the US-Israel strikes on Iran unfolded on Monday, disrupting supply chains, driving up oil prices and leaving many Middle East business leaders at a major trade fair in Hong Kong in an awkward position. As the strikes entered a third day, oil prices surged by 13 per cent – the biggest rise in four years – briefly climbing above US$80 a barrel. Freight costs also jumped due to risks of potential damage to vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow passage... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3345130/hong-kong-exporters-and-exhibitors-face-fallout-us-israel-strikes-iran?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3345130/hong-kong-exporters-and-exhibitors-face-fallout-us-israel-strikes-iran?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Mar 2026 08:57:49 +0000 Zhao Ziwen Zhao Ziwen Saudi Arabia has pledged to deepen hi-tech cooperation with China in areas such as new energy and artificial intelligence (AI). “Saudi Arabia is willing to further deepen cooperation with China in areas including oil and gas, new energy, artificial intelligence and high technology, to bring greater benefits to the peoples of both countries,” Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said, according to China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The pledge comes at a time when the kingdom is facing growing... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3336508/china-and-saudi-arabia-pledge-deeper-hi-tech-cooperation-despite-us-pressure?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3336508/china-and-saudi-arabia-pledge-deeper-hi-tech-cooperation-despite-us-pressure?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Dec 2025 11:15:21 +0000 Yuanyue Dang Yuanyue Dang China is looking to the United Arab Emirates to help speed up negotiations for a free-trade agreement with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), according to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Wang met his Emirati counterpart in Abu Dhabi on Friday, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on its website. He told Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan that China supported the UAE’s “measures to safeguard national security and development” and its “increased role in international and... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3336341/chinas-wang-yi-urges-uae-help-close-free-trade-deal-gulf-cooperation-council?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3336341/chinas-wang-yi-urges-uae-help-close-free-trade-deal-gulf-cooperation-council?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Dec 2025 13:10:47 +0000 David Dodwell David Dodwell We should call it the “Neom factor”: the force that transforms reasonable aggressive ambition into hallucinogenic fantasyland. It glared out at me last week in a Financial Times headline: “Three ‘Heathrows’ of growth: the unstoppable rise of Middle East airports”. In short, Dubai, Istanbul, Riyadh, Doha and Abu Dhabi in aggregate have airport expansion plans to lift passenger capacity almost threefold to around 750 million a year over the coming decades. In the words of Paul Griffiths, chief... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3335236/why-gulf-regions-dreams-aviation-domination-are-built-sand?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3335236/why-gulf-regions-dreams-aviation-domination-are-built-sand?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 Dec 2025 08:30:10 +0000 Elina Noor Elina Noor The dust has yet to settle despite the conclusion of the 47th Asean Summit under Malaysia, which remains the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations for the remainder of the year. There are two main takeaways from the Kuala Lumpur meetings. First, by most objective measures, Malaysia has successfully pulled off not only the summit but its year-long chairmanship, steering several initiatives long in the making past the finish line. One of the most consequential is the formal admission... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3334072/its-year-under-malaysia-asean-tried-set-systemic-reform-motion?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3334072/its-year-under-malaysia-asean-tried-set-systemic-reform-motion?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 26 Nov 2025 21:30:09 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain With UN sanctions set to be reactivated against Iran on Sunday, Tehran finds itself facing a tough choice between capitulation to US President Donald Trump’s demands for “unconditional surrender” over its nuclear programme and further Israeli attacks. With an equally unpalatable option of mediation by distrustful Gulf Arab neighbours that it has intimidated for decades, Tehran is playing for time in the hope that Washington can be persuaded to resume bilateral negotiations that were scuttled by... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3326591/iran-faces-no-win-situation-un-sanctions-threat-israeli-strikes-loom?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3326591/iran-faces-no-win-situation-un-sanctions-threat-israeli-strikes-loom?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 24 Sep 2025 00:36:21 +0000 Julie Zhang Julie Zhang Hong Kong private-equity manager, Templewater, sees significant opportunities in connecting Asia’s fast-growing electric vehicle (EV) and energy-storage industries with Middle Eastern markets seeking clean-energy solutions as the region shifts away from oil reliance. Templewater, which this month held a signing ceremony in Hong Kong with Omani sovereign wealth fund Future Fund Oman for the launch of Oman’s first Energy Transition Fund, believes the fund will appeal to investors aiming to tap... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3326342/hong-kongs-templewater-eyes-middle-east-opportunities-growing-clean-energy-sector?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3326342/hong-kongs-templewater-eyes-middle-east-opportunities-growing-clean-energy-sector?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 22 Sep 2025 03:58:35 +0000 Cheryl Arcibal Cheryl Arcibal A venture capital firm backed by Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund is taking a minority stake in an AI-powered logistics technology start-up backed by Hong Kong’s wealthiest man, as it looks for investment opportunities in the Greater China region to more than triple its assets under management by the end of 2025. Doha-based Rasmal Ventures, backed by the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), has invested US$2 million (HK$15.6 million) in Hong Kong’s Nexx, an 18-month-old start-up backed by Li... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3325067/qatari-fund-invests-us2-million-ai-start-nexx-backed-hong-kongs-wealthiest-man?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3325067/qatari-fund-invests-us2-million-ai-start-nexx-backed-hong-kongs-wealthiest-man?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 10 Sep 2025 23:30:08 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain Global gas giant Qatar has pledged to invest US$103 billion in Africa in the coming years, joining Gulf neighbours the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia as the continent’s biggest financiers amid waning interest from the West and China. Six sub-Saharan African countries are set to benefit from agreements signed during the second half of last month with Al-Mansour Holdings, a conglomerate owned by a branch of Qatar’s ruling al-Thani dynasty. Key critical metals producer the Democratic... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3324228/qatar-joins-gulf-surge-us103-billion-african-nations-wests-interest-wanes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3324228/qatar-joins-gulf-surge-us103-billion-african-nations-wests-interest-wanes?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 04 Sep 2025 04:00:10 +0000 Melinda Martinus Melinda Martinus The second Asean-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit and the inaugural Asean-GCC-China Summit, held in Malaysia from May 26 to 27, marked a significant step towards deepening ties between Southeast Asia and the Gulf. While interregional cooperation is often framed in terms of energy, trade and investment, the bedrock of this relationship is increasingly shaped by people-to-people connectivity, anchored in labour migration, religious devotion and growing financial linkages. As fast-growing... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3316133/are-migrant-workers-real-glue-cementing-asean-gcc-ties?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3316133/are-migrant-workers-real-glue-cementing-asean-gcc-ties?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Jun 2025 04:00:09 +0000