Gulf states battling to attract settlers French President Sarkozy, the opening of the first naval base, a permanent French military presence in the Arabian Gulf, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince, and it will not be the first French military bases in the Gulf, but also the only outside Africa, and the rooms will open the UAE's sovereignty permanent military base in a strategic location near the Strait of Hormuz and will include those

www.bbc.co.uk This was my first visit to Qatar and I admit I failed in one of my main missions, to get under the skin of the country. On Qatar Airways, I met Filipino cabin crew. The airport ground staff were Pakistani, the hotel receptionist, Sri Lankan, the barista who made my cappuccino on the way to the Arab Summit, Nepali.

www.ft.com Growth in Arab Gulf states will almost halve in 2009 on lower than expected oil prices amid the gloomiest global economic outlook in more than half a century, according to the IMF.

LONDON (Reuters) - Gulf states believe Israel will destroy Iran's nuclear programme rather than allow it to acquire an atomic bomb, an adviser to the Kuwaiti government and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) said on Tuesday.

WASHINGTON, April 16 (Reuters) - The United States is hopeful Saudi Arabia and other Arab nations will offer diplomatic and financial help to Iraq at a conference of its neighbors next week, said a senior U.S. official on Wednesday.

Reviewed: 20-Feb-07 The Gulf Cooperation Council needs to reform its labour markets in order to end dependence on cheap foreign labour and increase employment levels and productivity of its national workforce. Currently migrant workers take 60% of jobs in the private sector. In the United Arab Emirates, the most extreme case, that figure is 99%. Locals cannot compete when wages are about half the minimum needed to support a family.

Published: 20-Nov-06 As overseas money flows into the region and economic integration beckons, the GCC is seeking to reduce its dependence on oil.

David Robertson in Dubai The Times: Some cities in the world are well known for being unloved. People like to say that the best place to be in Brussels is on the train to Paris. But such is the oppressive heat, not to mention the oppressive political culture of Doha, that foreign residents cannot even find a witticism to disparage the Qatari capital.

Wednesday, August 1, 2007 DUBAI, United Arab Emirates: One of the most popular game shows to hit Arab television this year has some of the trappings of talent shows in Europe and America: swaggering contestants, big budget sets, grizzled judges and the chance to become a real star.

Mar 28, 2006 In the aftermath of the fallout of the Dubai port deal, it appears that all is well in the United States; the system of checks and balances worked. Congress blocked a decision by the Bush Administration that could have had serious consequences for national security.

Sep 5, 2006 This week the Emir of Kuwait Sabah Al Ahmed Al Sabah is coming to Washington DC to meet with President Bush. Kuwait is a country that many Americans know almost nothing about beyond the fact that the United States fought a war to save it from Saddam Hussein’s Iraq in the early 1990s. What they do not know is that the tiny oil sheikdom has been much better than its neighbors in helping the United States achieve its goals in the Middle East.

Dec 26, 2006 The decision by Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz to create a committee of princes that will have the power to choose the future kings and crown princes of the kingdom as well as the authority to remove those whom it deems unfit to rule has created quite a stir inside and outside the kingdom. Although this new process will not be set in motion until the current king and crown prince, Defense Minister Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz, have passed on, it is one more indication that King Abdullah is committed to taking bold, new measures and initiatives to help the kingdom confront difficult challenges and survive new realities. The move is another step forward for the king’s gradual, yet comprehensive reform program. This amendment to the Saudi Basic Law is also symbolically important because it signals the royal family’s willingness to get its own house in order as part of a wider reform agenda.

Washington's attempt to pave the way for another invasion by fomenting anti-Shia sectarianism in the Middle East will fail Azzam Tamimi Wednesday March 7, 2007 The Guardian

Business Day: A SLEW of articles has recently appeared in the international media warning that the US — or more accurately the Bush administration — is preparing for an imminent and catastrophic military attack on Iran. The evidence of military preparations in the Middle East region is mounting. Last month, US President George Bush announced the deployment of a second aircraft carrier group to the Persian Gulf, along with 21500 extra troops for Iraq.