Middle East News & Analysis

Middle East

Russia’s trade and investment into the Middle East is rapidly developing, with relations both through the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Arab League all helping boost bilateral trade by 25% during 2025. Partially driven by the developments along the INSTC, and new regional free trade agreements, we provide analysis of the growing Russia-Middle East economic partnership. Discover trade statistics, investment flows from the GCC, and business opportunities for companies in both regions.

Featured October 8, 2026

President Putin’s Q&A Session At The 2026 Valdai Club Discussions: Full Text, Responses & Analysis  

Russian President Vladimir Putin has held an intensive Q&A session at the recent Valdai Club event in Moscow. He covered multiple issues including the differences between the collapse of the USSR and the current situation within Russia, Kaliningrad, the use of nuclear weapons, NATO, the Luhansk and Donetsk People’s Republics, Russian prior attempts to integrate into Europe, the international maritime rule of law, Iran, the development of the Donbass, China, differences between Russia and Chinese culture, Japan, President Trump, Serbia, India, nuclear proliferation, Italy, the European Union, EU asset returns, a new Iron Curtain, Palestine, BRICS, APEC, Israel, Artificial Intelligence, UN reform, the Northern Sea Route, the Russian economy, Russia-Africa relations, Switzerland, Ukraine, updates on the Ukraine conflict and the potential for movement into a new political direction. It is essential reading for anyone interested in Russia’s global views on Russian and international affairs.

Read full article →
October 6, 2026

Trans – Afghan Railway MoU Agreement Signed – Russian Exports To Benefit

Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and the UAE have signed an MoU to cooperate on the proposed Kazakhstan-Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan railway project, also known as the Central Asia-South Asia (CASA). If completed, it would give the region access to Pakistani seaports. This also has implications for Russian exports. We discuss the latest developments and what this means for Russian trade potential.

Read more →
September 29, 2026

The 2026 Africa Aerospace And Defense Exhibition: Russia’s Expanding Defense Industry Gains A New Industrial Dimension In Africa & Middle East

The 2026 Africa Aerospace And Defense Exhibition has taken place in South Africa, while Egypt has hosted the El Alamein International Airshow. We examine Russia’s significant participation in both these events and what it means for Russia’s military and defence sector exports.

Read more →

Stay Ahead of Global Developments

Subscribe to receive exclusive insights and analysis on Middle East.

September 28, 2026

Russia At The United Nations: 50 Meetings – Multipolar Connectivity, Selective Western Dialogue and Economic Diversification: Analysis

The Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov has held 50 meetings while attending the United Nations in New York. We examine each of these, including important discussions with the United States, and Germany and look at the significance of Russia’s expanding international diplomacy and what this means in terms of foreign policy developments and potential outcomes.

Read more →
September 28, 2026

Russian Exports To Egypt Up 15.6% In 7M 2026

Roman Chekushov, the Russian Deputy Industry and Trade Minister, has been meeting with Mohamed Farid, the Egyptian Industry Minister, Khaled Hashem, the Investment and Foreign Trade Minister, Deputy Foreign Minister Wael Hamed and the chairman of the Federation of Egyptian Industries, Mohamed El-Sewedy in Cairo to discuss trade developments. Bilateral trade is up 15.6% in 2026.

Read more →
September 27, 2026

The 2026 TNF Industrial & Energy Forum: Russia’s Energy Technology Base, Industrial Localization And International Markets: Analysis

The annual TNF Energy forum has concluded in Tyumen, featuring significant energy participation involving China, ASEAN, Central Asia, the Middle East and Africa. The event laid out Russia’s energy dynamics, exports and infrastructure build with oil and gas companies, equipment manufacturers, oilfield-service providers, technology developers, universities, government institutions and foreign energy partners. We assess the likely impact and global energy flows. This article is essential reading for anyone interested in Russia’s global energy development.

Read more →
September 24, 2026

The Eurasian Economic Union & The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s 2027-2030 Action Plan: Content & Analysis

The Eurasian Economic Union and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation have agreed a Joint Action Plan to cover the period 2027-2030. This covers important trade development areas including digitalization, information and communication technologies, customs regulation, agro-industry, food security, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, consumer protection, green-economy issues and information exchange. We deep dive the contents to explain exactly what this means and the impact on EAEU and SCO members.

Read more →
September 23, 2026

Russia’s Trade With The Global South Hits US$299 Billion In H1 2026: Country By Country Analysis  

Russia’s trade with the Global South and ‘friendly’ countries now accounts for 85% of its total, reaching about US$299 billion in H1 2026. The West provides just 15% of Russia’s economic trade and continues to decline. We examine the main Global South trade partners in all regions, and provide the latest H1 2026 trade data. There are some surprising results for those who assume Russia only trades oil with China and India. The non-energy sector on a worldwide basis is increasingly dominant as Global South trade volumes continue a Russian growth trajectory.

Read more →