Summary: Italy, Algeria and Tunisia share an energy nexus of interest that has the potential to alter the economic landscape for all three as Europe scrambles to free itself from its dependency on Russian oil and gas.
Summary: while the world’s attention is focussed on Vladimir Putin’s war in the Ukraine his efforts to expand Russian influence in Africa continue at a pace that is causing disquiet in the Mauritanian capital of Nouakchott.
Summary: Iran sees opportunities as stiff Ukrainian opposition blunts Putin’s war efforts and forces him to scale back Russian military presence in Syria.
Summary: Italy and Europe look to Algeria to reduce their dependence on Russian gas, but the North African country’s lack of strategic economic thinking has reinforced the perception that it is an unstable partner.
Summary: although Russia’s invasion of Ukraine further complicates Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s quest for a geopolitically balanced foreign policy, it stands to help him in his principal objective of securing a further term of office next year.
Summary: while the Yemen truce has largely held and there is hope it will be renewed, the war in Ukraine has exacerbated food insecurity with prices soaring for wheat and other commodities even as ordinary Yemenis, hit hard by rampant inflation, are already lacking the money to buy food.
Summary: as the war in Ukraine enters an ever more dangerous phase, MENA states continue to take a fence-sitting posture that keeps their options open and avoids annoying Putin.
Summary: despite the relative calm of the past month, energy markets remain mired in uncertainty with volatility only likely to increase.
Arab Digest editor William Law welcomes back Qatar University Gulf analyst Dr Ali Bakir to discuss what’s at stake for the region and beyond as the JCPOA talks, which appeared close to reaching the finish line, now seem bogged down in Vienna. What the Iranians see as a weakened US administration may allow them to drag the negotiations out and ultimately doom the deal, a scenario that could trigger a MENA nuclear arms race.
Summary: the military that now runs the country is unprepared to cope with the food crisis caused by Putin’s war.
