It was a hot day in August 1990 when my cousins arrived from Kuwait. They had been made refugees due to Saddam Hussein’s forces’ invasion of their homeland. There was the kind Rasha, who was around my age, her older sister, the confident Alaa, and the innocent Mohamed Saad, who quickly became the closest to me. I ended […]

HE Dr Oleksandr Balanutsa, Ambassador of Ukraine to the UAE, discusses the UAE-Ukraine Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement.

HE Rawan Tawfeeqi, the Kingdom of Bahrain’s Minister of Youth Affairs, discusses Bahrain’s commitment to having long-term youth policy frameworks that align with global priorities.

Rather than solely a cessation of hostilities between Iran and the United States (US), the two-week ceasefire between the two parties, brokered by Pakistan, is an attempt to establish a framework for mediating a wide range of issues in the Middle East. Since its declaration, however, it has been extended, continuously contested, and brought close to collapse. Tehran and […]

Iran’s attacks against Gulf states, including threats to civilians and civilian infrastructure, must be condemned clearly and without hesitation. No country should have to  live under the shadow of missile and drone attacks targeting its sovereignty, its people, or the systems that sustain daily life. Estonia quickly and unequivocally condemned Iran’s inexcusable attacks. It stands in […]

As Emirati children growing up in Dubai, it was natural for us to attend school alongside classmates of more than a hundred different nationalities. We had friends who looked different, heard English spoken in many accents, and shared meals from around the world. Nobody stood out as ‘different’, and we did not question where anyone […]

While the West flourished post-Second World War, the Global South faced marginalization. Today, the international order is undergoing a realignment of power. More nations are standing against hegemony, and what once seemed permanent is shifting into a new reality: the rise of multipolar cooperation, a stronger voice from the Global South, and the recognition that the world’s future cannot rest in the hands of a single power.

Afaf Zurayk is one of the last figures of a generation of prominent Lebanese women artists who emerged in the 1960s–70s, when Beirut was an epicenter of art and creativity. Zurayk’s work and the artist’s life is a testament to resilience and the power of art in the face of adversity.

In 1938, Australian writer Alan Villiers traveled to the Gulf to document what he believed to be the last days of Arab sailing traditions. The neglect of Villiers’ account in academic research highlights how the Gulf’s cultural isolation is related to a deeper Orientalist structure of thought that overlooks the sea in its portrayal of the Arabian Peninsula. This Essay examines the legacies of Villiers’ work in the early history of Kuwaiti cinema and its preoccupation with the sea, pearl-diving, and pre-oil economic class distinctions to show what gives the seas such an allure in Kuwaiti film and literature.

The US is not simply withdrawing from multilateralism, it is increasingly bargaining through absence. It is re-pricing cooperation, reducing external constraints, and renegotiating the terms of global governance. Washington’s recent behavior toward multilateral institutions is not an episodic withdrawal, it constitutes a strategic repertoire used to renegotiate the terms of international cooperation.

With the paralysis of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), stakeholders in the international community are increasingly looking to economic, legal, and coalition-based alternatives. As the current global order undergoes a major transition, substantial UNSC reforms are necessary to remain relevant and to avoid further fragmentation in the international system.

Libyan artist Asmahan Elfergani’s work is largely absent from the formal record of art history, but she is remembered in oral histories and private collections. This Essay seeks to establish a preliminary biography of the artist and her work as it endures through homes, conversations, and the quiet persistence of remembrance.

Pan-Africanist ideals came to fruition circa 1860, paving the way for the development of the African Union (AU). This Explainer discusses the Union’s successes, the reasons for its shortcomings, and ways to advance in its future progression.

How has BRICS fared against predictions made in the early 2000s about its far-reaching potential? This Explainer discusses the evolution of BRICS from the late 1990s to this day, and explores its role as an alternative multilateral economic arrangement through its current initiatives.

The decolonization processes in the 20th century introduced a range of governance models between imperial metropoles and their former colonies, which challenge a strict interpretation of political autonomy and independence in international relations.

The nuclear non-proliferation regime has evolved from a patchwork of agreements into an important architecture of nuclear restraint globally. Yet, the regime now faces some formidable challenges. Deep structural fractures, including inequality, the disarmament deficit, and the tolerance of nuclear latency, are compounding threats of geopolitical rivalry, lack of universality, and the challenge of new disruptive technologies.

In November 2025, Brazil will host COP30, the annual UN climate conference. International climate governance has witnessed uneven progress in recent years, with North-South tensions and geopolitical instability threatening vital action against deteriorating climate conditions. What can we expect from Brazil’s COP and how does the summit highlight deeper problems in global climate governance?

Established in 1961, the NAM was birthed out of a decolonial group consciousness based on collective coordination for national self-determination against colonialism and imperialism. What factors within its evolution contributed to the hindering of its legitimacy, power, and relevance on a global scale?

Last month’s North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit put the question of burden-sharing for Europe’s security provision at center stage. While, ostensibly, transatlantic leaders appeared more unified around joint commitments to increase defense spending, the summit highlighted ongoing divergences between the allies. The gathering was notably short with only one working session scheduled to last a mere […]

Following the Arab League emergency meeting in early March, momentum around Gaza’s reconstruction has grown amid regional urgency and renewed international focus. At the heart of this effort lies a pivotal question: Will reconstruction serve as a tool for Palestinian sovereignty or be co-opted into another externally imposed process and prolonged military occupation?  This Policy Brief argues […]

On January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump upended years of climate finance commitments to Africa. The US President issued an executive order withdrawing the US from the Paris Agreement and rescinding the US International Climate Finance Plan. This did not come as a surprise as it is the second time President Trump has withdrawn from the Paris Agreement. […]

As the war with Iran is entering its third month, the opportunities for a timely and long-lasting resolution of the conflict remain slim. Even though both the United States (US) and Israel have reduced the scope of their armed attacks in Lebanon and Iran, neither side appears willing to commit to a long-term ceasefire. Moreover, […]

The US and Israel’s strikes against Iran since February 28 mark a pivotal moment in the Gulf’s security architecture. They transformed what had previously been a gradual recalibration of alliances into an immediate strategic dilemma for the GCC states. Iran’s direct attacks targeting Gulf territory and infrastructure exposed the double-edged nature of hosting US military assets, which […]

States are increasingly reverting to economic coercion in international politics. The sweeping use of sanctions and – particularly since President Trump’s second term in office – tariffs to influence other states is evidence of its growing salience. Economic coercion refers to the use of economic tools – specifically economic restrictions – to coerce a foreign government, actor, or entity […]

Fiker Institute’s Working Group on Gulf Foreign Policy held its second meeting and discussed the implications of the ceasefire announcements and the ongoing Strait of Hormuz crisis.

As part of its Al-Khaleej Program, Fiker Institute launched the Working Group on Gulf Foreign Policy in March 2026 in response to the ongoing Iran War. The Group seeks to establish a coordination mechanism that convenes expert voices from the six GCC countries to exchange views on the current developments and the future policy trajectories of the GCC states. 

Fiker Institute hosted Bahraini diplomat and Al-Khaleej Fellow Ahmed Buhejji to discuss energy diplomacy in the Gulf.

The Syllabus of Proposed Works is a non-exhaustive list of novels, plays, academic articles, podcast episodes, films, and visual artworks that speak to ongoing debates of identity and conflict as they relate to Arab Gulf states. It is designed to encourage dialogue and facilitate critical discourse in the context of ongoing developments in the region. […]

Fiker Institute’s Working Group on Gulf Foreign Policy held its third meeting and discussed prospects for a negotiated settlement of the crisis.

Fiker Institute hosted the Director General of b’huth (Dubai Public Policy Research Centre) Mohammed Baharoon and Associate Professor of Political Science at NYU Abu Dhabi Adam Ramey to discuss what is at stake for Gulf security, shifting alliances, and the broader balance of power.