Minister of Mines and Petroleum Shahabuddin Delawar met with the Turkish Ambassador to Kabul, Cihad Erginay, on Thursday where they discussed a number of issues including investment opportunities. Also discussed was the Afghan-Tajik oil field project. The minister of the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum said in a statement that due to improved security in Afghanistan, many investment opportunities are […]

The CTS also released figures on its operations conducted against ISIS militants. In April, 11 operations across Iraq were conducted against the terrorist group. The Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) announced on Sunday the detention of eight Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) members. The CTS also released figures on its operations conducted against ISIS militants. In April, 11 […]

On 26 February, the Islamic Republic of Iran joined a small but significant number of countries that allowed diplomats from the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) to take charge of the embassy of Afghanistan in Tehran. This development was a subtle shift from Iran’s earlier insistence on not handing over its embassy to a regime it doesn’t recognise, reiterating its […]

Chinese energy firms are increasingly cooperating with their Qatari and Saudi counterparts as the People’s Republic makes further inroads into the region. The Chinese oil giant Sinopec acquired a stake in a field owned by Qatar’s state-owned energy firm on Wednesday as Beijing increases its influence in the region. The official Qatar News Agency reported that QatarEnergy will transfer a […]

As the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia and Iran met in China to commence a thaw in relations, Beijing has positioned itself as an ‘alternate’ power, keeping a policy of cooperation, consultation, and non-interventionism at the forefront. With serious discussions over the conflict in Yemen now underway, can China deliver as a mediator and peacemaker in West Asia? Beijing clearly […]

The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has condemned the attack on the Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem by Israeli police. Violence resumed for a second straight night in Jerusalem on Wednesday when Palestinian worshippers barricaded themselves inside Al-Aqsa Mosque and Israeli police used force to remove dozens of worshippers. The Palestinian Red Crescent reported at least six people were injured […]

The top envoys for Saudi Arabia and Iran will meet in Beijing on Thursday, an Iranian official and a Saudi-owned newspaper said, as the two regional rivals work to hash out next steps of their diplomatic rapprochement amid a China-brokered deal, Reuters reported. The meeting between Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud and his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amirabdollahian, will be […]

It would be wrong to view the restoration of relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran as something that happened suddenly. Since the Iranian Revolution of 1979, ties between the two important Muslim neighbours have been strained. For the Saudi elite the Revolution was not only anti-monarchical but also a boost to the Shia sect within Islam. For the Iranian revolutionaries, […]

The recent announcement of a China-brokered peace deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran initially took the world by surprise. The debate persists concerning whether this deal will last, its potential implications for the United States, what it means for the Middle East region (including Israel), and what brokering this agreement indicates about China’s rising power. However, the implications of the […]

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s visit to Saudi Arabia signals strategic intent of the country in banking on Riyadh’s renewed ambitious drive in modernisation and the resulting positive spin off effects. Both KL and Riyadh are in similar geopolitical and economic settings, with similar concerns and the need to reorient the economic fundamentals. Both are in a transitional period of […]