Dh4.9b defence deals signed at IDEX2013

Source: Khaleej Times (Read full story)

 Nineteen defense contracts worth AED 4.9 billion were signed by the UAE Armed Forces with international and national contractors, Major General Obaid Al Ketbi, Chairman of the organizing committee for the International Defense Exhibition and Conference (IDEX2013) announced on Tuesday at the show’s daily press briefing. The largest of the contracts announced today is worth AED1.9 billion and sealed with the Advanced Military Maintenance Repair and Overhaul Centre (AMMROC) which will provide aircraft management, maintenance and repair services to the Armed Forces, according to Al-Ketbi.

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Analysis | Saudi Arabia Energy Profile Update – U.S. EIA

Source: SUSRIS (Read full story)

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Saudi Arabia is the largest oil consuming nation in the Middle East. Saudi Arabia consumed approximately 3 million barrels per day (bbl/d) of oil in 2012, almost double 2000 levels, because of strong industrial growth and subsidized prices. Contributing to this growth is rising direct burn of crude oil for power generation, which reaches 1 million bbl/d during summer months, and the use of natural gas liquids (NGL) for petrochemical production. Khalid al-Falih warned that domestic liquids demand was on a pace to reach over 8 million bbl/d (oil equivalent) by 2030 if there were no improvements in energy efficiency.

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Yemen’s powerful families still cast shadows

Source: The Washington Post (Read full story)

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A year after former president Ali Abdullah Saleh stepped down in a deal brokered by the United States and Yemen’s Arab neighbors, the country’s three most influential families continue to cast a large shadow over the political transition. Unlike leaders of other nations altered by the Arab Spring revolutions, Yemen’s elites were neither jailed nor exiled, and they have remained inside the country, free to operate as they will. The continuity has helped prevent Yemen from descending into a Syria-like civil war or erupting into the violent political turmoil seen in Egypt and Tunisia. But the elites’ lingering influence has also impeded Yemen’s progress, say activists, analysts and Western diplomats.

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The US and the Gulf States: Uncertain Partners in a Changing Region

Source: Atlantic Council (Read full story)

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The United States and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) share vital interests. In addition to core mutual defense needs, the Gulf is a major market for US exporters and remains an important source of petroleum. Yet the shared political, security, and commercial interests of the Gulf states and the United States have not translated into the deep mutual trust that form the basis of long-term alliances. Such trust is undercut by a US perspective dominated by ill-informed views of the Gulf states, often failing to distinguish one from another, worrying primarily about the export of Islamic extremism and terrorism from the Gulf region, and critical of non-representative governance structures and treatment of women and minorities within their borders.

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End occupation, UAE tells Iran

Source: Khaleej Times (Read full story)

The UAE on Thursday stressed the need for solidarity and cooperation among Muslim countries to overcome the current challenges, seize opportunities and urged continuous efforts to secure the Muslim nation’s interests and stature. Addressing the 12^th Summit of the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation (OIC), Minister of State for Foreign Affairs (MoFA), Dr Anwar Gargash said the UAE is following with great concern the current situations of Muslim peoples and communities and is eager to bolster ties among Muslim countries.

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Drone Strikes’ Dangers to Get Rare Moment in Public Eye

Source: The New York Times (Read full story)

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Mr. Brennan, a former C.I.A. station chief in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, has taken a particular interest in Yemen, sounding early alarms within the administration about the threat developing there, working closely with neighboring Saudi Arabia to gain approval for a secret C.I.A. drone base there that is used for American strikes, and making the impoverished desert nation a test case for American counterterrorism strategy.

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Special Report | Prince Muqrin Named 2nd Deputy PM

Source: SUSRIS (Read full story)

Prince Muqrin Bin Abdul Aziz was appointed Second Deputy Premier by King Abdullah on Friday according to the Saudi Embassy Washington. Muqrin, who served as Advisor and Special Envoy to the King since being relieved as head of Saudi intelligence last July, was to take up his new position immediately. He becomes the fifth prince in the history of the Kingdom to be named to the post which has seen previous incumbents eventually elevated to Crown Prince, direct successor to the throne. The post has been vacant since Prince Nayef was named Crown Prince in October 2011.

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U.S. and Iranian Strategic Competition: Sanctions, Energy, Arms Control, and Regime Change

Source: Center for International and Strategic Studies (Read full story)

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It is not clear that these pressures and sanctions can succeed in altering Iranian nuclear ambitions or bringing stability to US and Iranian competition over nuclear weapons and security in the region. It is clear, however, that the push toward enhancing sanctions and growing international isolation is having a real impact on the Iranian economy. Iran’s recent actions also indicate that new sanctions and international – as well as internal – pressure is having serious effects.

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