On 9 December, MEI hosted a talk with Dr. Mohammed Alsudairi and Dr. Andrea Ghiselli to discuss their new book, Narratives of Sino-Middle Eastern Futures. Their research explores the trajectory and potential endpoint of Sino-Middle Eastern relations. Are we on the precipice of a post-American Chinese hegemony in the region, or are we reaching the outer limits of what is feasible within these essentially transactional ties?

Drawing on a wide range of multilingual sources from 2010 to 2023 and based on a framework of thin constructivism, the book delves into Saudi, Syrian, and Chinese elite narratives regarding the Middle Eastern regional order and China’s envisaged place within it.

The aim of the S R Nathan Distinguished Lecture is to provide greater awareness and understanding of the modern Middle East. This lecture provides a forum for statesmen, internationally prominent scholars and public intellectuals to express their views on key issues. The lecture series is named in honour of Singapore’s late former president, Mr S R Nathan, who encouraged a deeper understanding of the Middle East region in Singapore.

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Sustaining the Saudi Success Story

Despite the conflicts roiling the Middle East, Saudi Arabia has not stopped pursuing its social and economic agendas. Vision 2030 represents one of the region’s most ambitious national transformations, seeking not just economic diversification away from oil dependence, but also groundbreaking social reforms. Since its introduction in April 2016 by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, remarkable milestones include non-oil sectors contributing over 50 per cent of GDP, and women’s workforce participation surging from 17 to 36.2 per cent.

Alongside this, entertainment activities once thought unthinkable, ranging from concerts featuring Western superstars to e-sports tournament, are now routine in the Saudi landscape. The Kingdom has also launched numerous giga-projects to turn its cities into both tourism and investment hubs. Legal reforms have also been rolled out to turn Saudi Arabia into a conductive, international business environment.

The Middle East Institute hosted HE Mr Mohammed Khalid Alyahya, the adviser to the Saudi Foreign Minister, who delved into the revolutionary changes in Saudi Arabia, and how the Kingdom is branding itself as the beacon of the region. It also highlight how investors and firms from abroad can engage with its increasingly open business environment.

Saudi Arabia’s foreign policy is not only key to its quest for leadership in its immediate region and beyond, but also central to the objectives of Vision 2030 — one of which is to project a modern image of the Kingdom. Chief among these is Riyadh’s partnership with the United States, which has transcended the security dimension.

US President Donald Trump’s visit to Riyadh earlier in May concluded with a flurry of deals ranging from real estate projects to AI and tech investments. But defence purchases, particularly American products, remain high priorities, as reports over a potential sale of F-35s have shown. Where regional affairs are concerned, the Palestinian issue and the spectre of an Israeli hegemon will also likely top discussions when Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman travels to the United States in November — his first visit there since 2018.

Is there a reason behind the timing for the Saudi Crown Prince’s trip to Washington? Is normalisation with Israel still on the cards and what are the conditions? How much further will Riyadh go to diversify its international partnerships, whether in the security domain or otherwise?

The Middle East hosted experts on Saudi foreign policy, Aziz Alghashian and Umer Karim, to address the above issues and more.

Saudi Arabia’s foreign policy is not only key to its quest for leadership in its immediate region and beyond, but also central to the objectives of Vision 2030 — one of which is to project a modern image of the Kingdom. Chief among these is Riyadh’s partnership with the United States, which has transcended the security dimension. US President Donald Trump’s visit to Riyadh earlier in May concluded with a flurry of deals ranging from real estate projects to AI and tech investments. But defence purchases, particularly American products, remain high priorities, as reports over a potential sale of F-35s have shown.

Where regional affairs are concerned, the Palestinian issue and the spectre of an Israeli hegemon will also likely top discussions when Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman travels to the United States in November — his first visit there since 2018.

Is there a reason behind the timing for the Saudi Crown Prince’s trip to Washington? Is normalisation with Israel still on the cards and what are the conditions? How much further will Riyadh go to diversify its international partnerships, whether in the security domain or otherwise?

The Middle East hosted experts on Saudi foreign policy, Aziz Alghashian and Umer Karim, to address the above issues and more.

Launched in 2025 by G42 with partners including OpenAI, Oracle, NVIDIA, Cisco, and SoftBank, Stargate UAE is a landmark AI supercomputing project. As part of a $500 billion global AI infrastructure initiative, it will feature a 1-gigawatt computer cluster, expanding to 5 GW — the largest outside the United States. Aligned with both the UAE’s Vision 2031 and National AI Strategy 2031, the Stargate AI cluster serves to reinforce national digital sovereignty, economic diversification, and sustainable innovation with the use of nuclear and solar energy.

The Middle East Institute hosted speakers from the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research (ECSSR) in a webinar to explore Stargate’s scale, sustainability, strategic goals, and its role in shaping regional AI leadership.

In scarcely a century, Salafism has transformed Sunni Islam. Claiming to be a revival of the purest form of Islam, this movement promotes ultraconservative social and religious norms and rejects all non-Sunni reli

gious groups. In Egypt, its influence has grown to the point of reshaping mainstream conceptions of the faith. How did such a deep religious transformation sweep through Egypt so rapidly? What is the significance of Salafism for the country’s political scene, both before and after Hosni Mubarak fell from power in 2011?

Twilight of the Saints examines the history of Salafism in Egypt from its 1920s emergence in Cairo’s scholarly circles through the present day, shedding new light on the movement’s shifting relationship to politics. Drawing on extensive fieldwork and interviews, Stéphane Lacroix illustrates how Salafism redefined what it means to be Muslim for Egyptians. He emphasizes the factors that distinguish the Salafis from the Muslim Brotherhood, despite their parallel trajectories. Lacroix explores how Salafism influenced the dynamics of the 2011 revolution and the democratic transition that ended with the army’s takeover of the country, as well as how it has fared since.

In this context, MEI will host a book talk with Stephane Lacroix to present the book and reflect on our understanding of the relationship of Salafism, politics, and authoritarianism in Egypt, and its significant implications for the wider Muslim world.

America is a mixed bag for Arabs. Its culture and institutions are respected, but its policies in the Middle East, especially its unwavering support for Israel, are widely despised.

In this webinar, Professor Mustapha Kamel Al-Sayyid will examine these contradictions, drawing on public opinion surveys from across the region to show how Arab societies balance admiration with resentment. The talk will highlight the gap between popular sentiment and government policy and explore what these tensions mean for the future of US–Arab relations.

America is a mixed bag for Arabs. Its culture and institutions are respected, but its policies in the Middle East, especially its unwavering support for Israel, are widely despised.

In this webinar, Professor Mustapha Kamel Al-Sayyid will examine these contradictions, drawing on public opinion surveys from across the region to show how Arab societies balance admiration with resentment. The talk will highlight the gap between popular sentiment and government policy and explore what these tensions mean for the future of US–Arab relations.

In the wake of recent regional conflicts, the Middle East has once again become a testing ground for major power competition. Although US-China relations are largely defined by strategic rivalry, the region also raises the question of whether cooperation on shared concerns remains possible. Track 2 dialogues have explored potential common ground in areas such as regional stability, while also exposing where the two sides clash most sharply, and why.

In this talk, Prof. She Gangzheng, Associate Professor and Director of the Centre for Overseas Security at Tsinghua University and currently a visiting scholar at Harvard University, will share insights from his recent involvement in Sino-US projects exploring avenues for cooperation in the region, unpacking both the opportunities and the challenges for engagement.

The war in Gaza triggered by Hamas’ attacks on Israel in October 2023 sparked several massive aftershocks that have redrawn the geopolitical map of the Middle East. After decimating Hamas, the Israel Defense Forces went on to effectively neuter Hezbollah in Lebanon, depriving Iran of its most potent forward threat to Israel. The overthrow of the Assad regime in Syria last December further weakened the so-called Axis of Resistance. With Iran at its most vulnerable in decades, Israel took the fight to the Islamic Republic in a 12-day offensive in June that left its chief regional foe reeling.

The aftermath of the violence has significantly altered the balance of power in the Middle East. Israel has emerged as the primary security power in the region, Iran has seen its influence evaporate, and other countries are calibrating their responses to the new reality. How do Arab states, particularly those in the Gulf, which have only recently moved to détente with Iran, respond to Israel’s rise in tandem?

The Middle East Institute’s Annual Conference 2025 unpacked the effects of a re-ordered region on the rest of the world via three panels staffed with experts. These panels examined the impact of the far-reaching changes brought about by almost two years of war.

Panel 3: What Lies Ahead?

This concluding panel looked ahead and attempted to divine future trends, including how the Gaza war will end, and the repercussions of changes on Singapore.

Get Ready to Dive Deeper than the Discussion. 

Asaad Alshamlan argued that the Middle East cannot be explained by a single grand narrative, highlighting four forces—Gulf–Arab disparities, state fragility, US–China rivalry, and the unresolved Palestinian question—which shape the region’s complex landscape. This MEI Persepectives article builds upon his arguments - read here.

Based on the insights he delivered at the event, Mohammed Baharoon unpacks how regional powers, global actors, and non-state players are fueling a revival of old imperial ambitions while introducing new, economy-driven “quantum politics” in the Middle East - read the full piece here.