Kuwait and Oman hope for peace dividend

More cordial Saudi-Qatar relations raise hopes for economic and energy investment progress in other GCC allies. But serious challenges remain

The new leaders of Kuwait and Oman were among the most relieved when Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman embraced Sheikh Tamim of Qatar on the latter’s arrival for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit in Saudi Arabia in early January. But any optimism the two men might have that a new era of GCC cooperation could help supercharge their economies and energy sectors is tempered by significant domestic challenges. Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah became emir of Kuwait in September last year, nine months after Haitham bin Tariq al-Said was named sultan of Oman. Both are well aware that minimising regional feuds is essential if GCC states are to cope with the political, economic and health