Gulf states spend heavily on advanced arms, yet personnel limits, fragmented command, and asymmetric threats keep military power below expectations.
Browsing: Yoel Guzansky
Saudi Arabia faces a maritime pincer as Houthi attacks close Bab al-Mandab while Hormuz remains disrupted and allies hesitate.
Hormuz bypass routes need redundancy not substitutes, as Yanbu, Fujairah, and Oman offer only partial relief.
Riyadh is pairing diplomatic restraint toward Iran with targeted military strikes against its proxies, raising the risk of wider war.
The U.S.-Saudi nuclear deal sparks fears of enrichment-driven arms race. Can a regional fuel bank avert crisis?
Iran kept its leverage. The US guarantee frayed. Gulf states hedge: rearm, diversify, and talk to Tehran.
Gulf states persist with cautious hedging amid Iranian attacks, prioritizing post-war security framework over open military alliance with US-Israel.
Saudi Arabia’s shift on Israel is stark: 99% of Saudis now oppose normalization, and a Palestinian state is a non-negotiable condition.
Gulf states fear both Iranian retaliation and regime collapse; they prefer a weakened, restrained Iran to the chaos of a rapid fall.
The Saudi-UAE rivalry complicates Israeli normalization, as Riyadh sees Israel aligned with Abu Dhabi, distancing potential rapprochement.