Afghanistan: U.S. loss is China’s gain
Afghanistan by itself is a true spoil of war. Ever since Soviet geologists mapped Afghanistan’s crags and valleys for minerals and raw materials, which according to estimates are worth trillions of dollars,...
Lebanon: The looming economic collapse
Basic medical facilities and emergency services won’t be able to face the crisis. It will be game over soon. "Doctors and nurses faced grave dangers as they battled in the frontlines against...
Michael Wurmser: “Norway is a game changer for Europe”
ByTheEast: How did you come to work in Norway?
Michael Wurmser: I was already in the commodity business when I was involved in Norway through friends. We had...
Lebanon’s gas boom dead in the water?
Lebanon’s quest for gas and oil has so far yielded no meaningful results with the country’s first-ever offshore search for hydrocarbons throwing up commercially unviable results. “No matter where you turn, the...
Lebanon: The next ‘oil-cursed’ country?
Late last month, a drillship anchored off Lebanon's coast started exploring for oil and gas raising hopes for a more prosperous economy, which currently is hanging by a thread off a cliff’s...
Energy: UAE gains its first nuclear power plant
In a first of its kind in the Middle East, the UAE is set to host a nuclear power plant in the region. The 5,600MW Barakah nuclear power plant (NPP), located around...
Libya: The economic potential of a failed state
The international community knows this: Libya is a model of a failed state. But a failed state with potential. Nine years since the start of the Arab Spring, which saw a wave...
Marc Goutalier on Saudi Arabia: “Riyadh aims to diversify its portfolio”
ByTheEast: Saudi Arabia is currently in the spotlight. What can we expect from Russian president Vladimir Putin's visit to Riyadh today?
Marc
Goutalier: In geopolitical terms this is symbolic...
Water scarcity in the Middle East, the growing normal
Water scarcity
is not a modern phenomenon, nor are wars over access to water. 4,500 years ago,
in what was then known as Iraq, a battle was fought between two ancient city
states over water...
How nomadism made Africa a land of disruptive innovation
Mobility, innovation and stability, three of the most important civilizational factors in economic development, are not calibrated the same way in every region of the world. Mary McAuliffe reports on the specific...