The Gulf states should prioritise diverse defences and domestic capability-building to hedge against uncertain US commitments and volatility in the Middle East, according to an expert at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Dalian in northeastern China this week.
Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa programme at Chatham House, said on Wednesday that regional governments remained deeply reliant on the United States for security but were increasingly uneasy about…




