Khaled Hashim – Researcher
The BRICS (Brazil, Russia, China, India, and South Africa) was not a promising economic-political diplomatic club, wanting a less dominant world for the West that did not include members from countries in the Middle East. This is no longer the case, of the six countries that recently joined the club, four are from the Middle East: Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Iran, and by accepting these six countries, more than a third of the members of the expanded group will be from Middle Eastern countries.
Undoubtedly, this accession by the countries of the Middle East to the BRICS represents one of the salient features of today that indicate that the Middle East is changing and re-forming and that a new chapter has begun. This process of change and formation that the Middle East is going through is also led by countries located on the periphery of the region that are trying to establish themselves as unbiased middle forces.
First: The Gulf countries as unbiased middle forces and pioneering the process of transformation and change.
Whoever thinks that the Middle East is suffering from a recession is weak, the Gulf economies are among the richest and most vital economies in this world, accompanied by the price of crude oil, which rose again to more than (90) dollars per barrel, and is expected to reach (110) dollars until 2024, and that $3.5 trillion oil wealth is spent on everything, from artificial intelligence models and bright new cities in the desert to strengthening the coffers of giant sovereign funds that scouring global capital markets in search of deals. The non-oil economy is growing at a healthy annual rate of (4%), and multinational investments across borders are on the rise. The Gulf Cooperation Council is also one of the important economic pillars that work to attract talented, rich people and capital from different countries of the world.
On the other hand, the Gulf states are trying to present themselves as unbiased brokers to one party at the expense of another. Saudi Arabia has offered mediation between Russia and Ukraine, and the UAE wants to host the upcoming World Climate Summit by playing a dual role as an oil exporter and at the same time a leader in clean green energy. Chaos in the region began to recede due to the biggest wave of diplomacy it has seen in decades. Saudi Arabia and Iran have negotiated a political breakthrough in the rivalry that has continued between them since the 1979 Iranian Revolution. Wars and killings have eased in Syria and Yemen. Saudi Arabia is considering recognizing the Jewish state 75 years after its establishment, following the Abraham Accords between Israel and some countries in the region, where four Arab countries established relations with Israel starting in 2020. And Israeli tourists have been flocking to Dubai and other Gulf tourist cities. Qatar has repaired its relations with its neighbours. The region even reconciled with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who once a day counted as a dictator and slaughtered his people.
