In this second roundtable of the Gulf Rising series, AGSIW looked beyond GCC relations with the United States to examine economic and political ties with Egypt. Roundtable participants explored the regional and domestic issues that have defined Gulf states’ foreign policy choices toward Egypt in the aftermath of the Arab uprisings and the implications for regional stability and U.S. foreign policy. The discussion was led by Abdel Monem Said Aly, chairman of the board, CEO, and director of the Regional Center for Strategic Studies in Cairo, senior fellow at the Crown Center for Middle East Studies at Brandeis University, and AGSIW founding director and honorary chair. Look for AGSIW's forthcoming policy paper summarizing the discussion. Read more
How is the United Arab Emirates’ foreign policy formulated and how has it developed over time? What are the internal and external pressures that have shaped this policy and propelled the UAE into an increasingly influential position? How has such a small country become a major player in the Middle East at large and an indispensable partner to its regional and global allies? Mishaal Al Gergawi, founder and managing director of the Delma Institute, answered these questions and more during this closed discussion. Read more
Saudi Arabia and its fellow Gulf states were quick to react to the passage of the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA) by the U.S. Congress and, in an equally overwhelming vote, its override of the presidential veto of the bill. Still the negative, yet cautious, tone of the official response does not fully capture the nature of the discussion among Saudi opinion makers and the public to this latest challenge to U.S.-Saudi relations. Read more
The U.S. Congress' swift and decisive override last week of President Barack Obama’s veto of the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA) may have been momentarily euphoric for the bill’s supporters. The political and emotional power of “justice for the 9/11 families” was reflected in the strikingly lopsided vote tallies. The Senate managed only one vote to sustain the veto – outgoing minority leader Harry Reid, who, tellingly, is retiring this year – and the House of Representatives mustered a mere 77 votes supporting the White House. Read more
If held as scheduled in June 2017, Kuwait’s legislative elections would mark the end of the first Kuwaiti Parliament to serve its full four-year term since 2003. The present Parliament, elected amid a wide-ranging opposition boycott, is unsurprisingly loyalist and thus has not challenged the government to advance a political reform agenda. Read more
Asked to describe Feedwise’s mission in a sentence, one of the organization’s founders, Taibah Al Mansour, says, “We nourish society.” Made up of a core group of 25 Kuwaiti youth, including Taibah and her co-founders Ali Burhaama and Shahad Al-Busairi, Feedwise is attempting to tackle a variety of issues, from feeding the hungry to addressing environmentally-stressed areas to raising mental health awareness. Read more
عشية المناظرة الثانية بين هيلاري كلينتون ودونالد ترامب مساء الأحد والتي ستجري في مدينة سانت لويس بولاية ميزوري، تبين مختلف استطلاعات الرأي، على المستوى الوطني وتلك التي أجريت في الولايات المحورية التي ستحسم الانتخابات، أن كلينتون متقدمة على ترامب ببضعة نقاط تتراوح بين أربعة نقاط في معدل استطلاعات الرأي وفقا لصحيفة نيويورك تايمز ( 45 بالمئة كلينتون و 41 بالمئة ترامب) و خمسة نقاط تقريبا (48.3 بالمئة كلينتون و43.8 ترامب) وفقا لمعدل مؤسسة ريل كلير بوليتيك اطلع على المزيد
The male guardianship system in Saudi Arabia is not just law: it is a set of bylaws and state-sanctioned discriminatory policies and practices that restrict a woman’s ability to have a wide range of choices unless permitted by her male guardian – typically a father, husband, brother or even a son. Read more
An IPO is the first step in the process of a company transforming from private to public form. This language is very confusing in the case of Aramco because "public" has two meanings: it can mean that the company’s shares can be traded freely on a securities exchange, which is the intended meaning in the case of an IPO, or it can mean that a company is owned by the government, which is true of Aramco, but not the intended usage of the word in the context of the IPO. Read more
In the Media
AGSIW Executive Vice President Ambassador Stephen A. Seche spoke with Al Arabiya regarding the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act and the implications of the presidential veto override. In addition, AGSIW Senior Resident Scholar Karen E. Young spoke with Energy Compass on JASTA. Young noted that U.S.-Saudi relations have "a history of highs and lows," but “this low is important because the reevaluation is coming more from the Saudi side.”
AGSIW Visiting Scholar Hala Aldosari spoke with BBC Arabic on the guardianship campaign and women's rights in Saudi Arabia.
Outreach
AGSIW Senior Resident Scholar Karen E. Young spoke at the Council on Foreign Relations' Gulf Economic Update on October 5, where she moderated the Gulf Cooperation Council briefing. AGSIW Board Member H.E. Yousef Al-Ebraheem also spoke about investment opportunities in Kuwait at the conference.
DATE Sunday October 30, 2016 TIME 5:00 pm LOCATION AMC Mazza Gallerie
5300 Wisconsin Ave NW
Washington, DC 20015 SPEAKERS Lubna Bagsair, Amr El-Bayoumi, Assad Fouladkar, Raymond Karam, Anna Kipervaser, Theo Padnos, Vishwas RSVP
Position Title: Research and Program Intern Department/Team: Programs and Communication Period: January through May 2017 Location: Washington, DC
Job Summary: The Internship Program at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington (AGSIW) provides talented students and recent graduates with a three-month (or longer) unpaid training opportunity designed to encourage professional and personal development. As a newly established organization, we encourage out-of-the-box thinking and value fresh perspectives. AGSIW will provide interns with a transportation stipend for the duration of the internship. Read more
