Explainer Hormuz tolls, frozen funds pose early tests for US-Iran peace progress Early cracks are beginning to show following last week’s US-Iran deal announcement even as both sides move ahead with steps toward ending the four-month conflict. Iran
Explainer Qatar blast underscores challenges in race to restart Gulf energy flows The deadly explosion marks an early test of Gulf efforts to revive oil and gas production following a historic energy supply shock caused by the US-Israel-Iran war. Qatar
Explainer What’s the status of Strait of Hormuz after US-Iran talks? Oil tankers continued to transit the strait in both directions, but many turned off their transponders over the weekend after Iran's military declared Hormuz closed once again. Iran
Oil falls more than 3% after Iran, US signal progress in talks International benchmark Brent crude fell to $78.68 as of 7:06 a.m. EDT. Iran
3 Iranian tankers with 4.8M barrels of oil pass US blockade: What to know By Jared Szuba In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military
Exclusive US firm HKN Energy takes over 7 oil fields from Syria's Kurds By Amberin Zaman Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture
Turkey says tanker seized by Iran carrying Turkish oil purchased from Iraq The ship was seized by the Iranian navy off the coast of Oman. Turkey
UAE President MBZ in Azerbaijan eyeing energy, investment cooperation Emirati entities have inked several energy deals with Azerbaijan in the past year. Legacy: Gulf
BP, Equinor change oil shipment plans after Red Sea Houthi attacks The Iran-backed rebels have said the attacks are in retaliation for the war in Gaza. Yemen
Iran says ‘enemy conspiracy’ behind outage at 70% of gas stations The Oil Ministry’s Shana news agency reported that operations will be running again as normal within “a few hours” and until then fuel is being distributed offline. Iran
Middle East transparency on carbon emissions lags behind rest of world Turkey and the UAE led the pack for most transparent countries in the region regarding greenhouse gas emissions. United Arab Emirates
COP28: historic deal agreed for world to ‘transition away’ from fossil fuels The summit stretched into prolonged negotiations over the terminology of the final text, after the “phase out” of fossil fuels was omitted from the draft a day before the scheduled end of the event. United Arab Emirates
China-Saudi Investment Conference begins in Beijing China is Saudi Arabia’s largest trading partner and biggest customer of its primary commodity: crude oil. Saudi Arabia
After US, India, UAE, World Economic Forum expects Brazil to enter green coalition India, the UAE and the United States are part of the First Movers Coalition, a green alliance that Rob van Riet, senior adviser at the WEF's Center for Nature and Climate, told Al-Monitor he hoped Brazil will be the next to join. United Arab Emirates
With world's eyes on Gaza, Turkey attacks Syria's Kurds again As of the beginning of 2023, at least 32 civilians have died in Turkish attacks in northeast Syria, including seven women and five children, according to local monitoring organizations. Syria
Iran says it seized ships in Gulf for alleged fuel smuggling The seizure and arrest of the foreign crew members occurred south of the disputed Abu Musa island, according to Iranian state media. Iran
Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power to develop green hydrogen project in Indonesia Green hydrogen has potential environmental benefits as well as drawbacks and is being pursued by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and other Gulf states. Legacy: Gulf
What’s on Putin’s agenda on rare trip to Saudi Arabia, UAE? The Russian president's trip comes amid heightened tensions in the Middle East, where the Hamas-Israel war has threatened to spill into a wider regional conflict. Legacy: Gulf
