The Iran War Has Remade the Gulf
The ongoing Iran war has significantly altered the political landscape of the Gulf region. Gulf Cooperation Council states are recalibrating their strategies in response to Iran's resilience despite suffering losses. As they navigate this new reality, the GCC is likely to diversify its alliances rather than align with a single power.
- ▪The Iran war has been the most disorienting event in the region since the 1979 revolution.
- ▪Iran has demonstrated strategic resilience by managing to disrupt global oil supply despite significant military losses.
- ▪GCC states are realizing their vulnerability, as their investments in U.S. defense systems did not fully protect their infrastructure.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
Analysis The Iran War Has Remade the Gulf The region knows that Iran won the war—and is hedging its bets as a result. By Amir Handjani, a board member at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. Foreign workers look at a tall plume of black smoke ascends following an explosion in the Fujairah industrial zone on March 3, 2026. Foreign workers look at a tall plume of black smoke ascends following an explosion in the Fujairah industrial zone on March 3, 2026. Fadel SENNA / AFP Iran Middle East and North Africa May 26, 2026, 4:16 PM The guns have not yet fallen silent over the Persian Gulf, but the governments of the Gulf Cooperation Council are already doing what they have always done in moments of upheaval: calculating, hedging, and preparing for a world that looks nothing like the…
Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Foreign Policy.
Discussion
0 commentsMore from Foreign Policy
