At the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Saudi Arabia made foreign policy announcements including one related the Yemen War

Saudi Arabia was a particularly prominent presence at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos this year, but contrary to expectations, their focus was not on energy but rather geopolitics. The country’s finance and foreign ministers each made announcements with significant consequences for the region.

After a decade of isolation, many countries in the middle east are warming back up to Syria and the Assad regime

In early January, the United Arab Emirates’ foreign minister met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus. And a once unthinkable meeting between Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Assad is now also in the works. Clearly, 2023 has begun with the momentum for normalizing ties with the Assad regime growing.

In the Middle East, growing politics trends related to conflict, human rights, elections, and the war in Ukraine

The beginning of a new year always provides an opportunity to reflect on the events of the previous year. While 2022 doesn’t have a flagship event that resonates quite like some years in the recent past, it nonetheless featured or foreshadowed a number of trends and developments that will likely have an impact in 2023 and beyond.