Debating regional missile defence
Posted: 08/12/2012 Filed under: Defence, Gulf and Middle East Security, James Hackett, Manama Voices | Tags: defence cooperation, defence economics, GCC, missile defence, Patriot anti-missile batteries, Qatar, THAAD, UAE, US 1 Comment »
A Standard Missile – 3 (SM-3) is launched from the USS Hopper (DDG 70) (Photo: US Missile Defense Agency)
By James Hackett, Editor of the Military Balance
Much press attention at this year’s Manama Dialogue will focus inevitably on the conflict in Syria and other consequences of the Arab Spring. But a set of other core issues also remain, including the threat perceptions of regional states, and Iran’s place in these calculations. Regional states, and international partners such as the US, remain concerned by Iran’s continuing drive to improve its ballistic missile capabilities, amidst international preoccupation with Tehran’s nuclear programme. Given these uncertainties, the development of regional military capabilities will likely figure high in delegates’ conversations Read the rest of this entry »
Asia’s energy security
Posted: 16/01/2012 Filed under: Geo-economics, Sanjaya Baru | Tags: Asia, China, economics, energy security, Gulf, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE Leave a comment »
By Dr Sanjaya Baru, Director for Geo-economics and Strategy
As Asia’s rising powers seek to sustain growth and ensure stability, energy security has moved to the forefront of Asian geopolitics. The recent visit by China’s Prime Minister Wen Jiabao to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar was as much about ensuring energy security for China as it was about China playing a role in maintaining political stability in the Middle East. The visit came against the backdrop of the growing threat of United States-led oil-export sanctions against Iran and China’s need to secure alternative sources of oil and gas. But its unstated purpose was to bolster China’s rising profile in the Persian Gulf and the Muslim world.
