MEnbar

What’s Next for Gulf Economies?

Oil Prices, regional conflicts, and the push for energy transition are redefining the Gulf states' economies as they enter 2026. Amid these shifts, how are these economies adapting to global uncertainty? In this episode of MEnbar, recorded on the sidelines of the Doha Forum 2025, Omar Rahman talks with Karen Young, Senior Research Scholar at Columbia University's Center of Global Energy Policy, and Senior Fellow at the Middle East Institute about how Gulf states are navigating geopolitical pressures, economic diversification, and the accelerating energy transition and what these changes may mean for the region’s political and economic future. The discussion explores how Gulf states respond to fluctuating oil prices and shifting trade patterns, digging into the strategies governments are using to diversify their economies. Young reflects on the challenge of balancing immediate economic needs with long-term reforms, highlighting the difficult choices Gulf states face in a rapidly changing regional landscape.

Media and the War of Narratives in MENA

The mainstream media has lost control of the narrative. Middle East Eye’s David Hearst joins MEnbar to explain why Western media narratives are collapsing.In this special episode of MEnbar, recorded on the sidelines of the Doha Forum 2025, Marc Owen Jones welcomes David Hearst, co-founder and editor-in-chief of Middle East Eye, to discuss how media and conflict have fundamentally reshaped each other across the MENA region. The conversation examines the erosion of trust in mainstream Western media, the rise of digital and ground-level reporting, and the collapse of long-standing narratives about Palestine. Hearst reflects on how geopolitical interests and editorial pressures shape conflict reporting, the growing power of social media in challenging and shaping narratives, and the broader impact of media coverage on public opinion and policy-making both regionally and globally.

Africa’s Internationalized Conflicts and the Broken Crisis Response

In this episode of MEnbar, recorded on the sidelines of the Doha Forum 2025, Marc Owen Jones is joined by Comfort Ero, President and CEO of the International Crisis Group, to examine the rapidly changing nature of conflict across Africa and its wider implications. Ero reflects on why crises in Sudan and the Sahel have worsened rather than stabilized, how international crisis response and management are struggling amid worsening humanitarian conditions and funding cuts and why Sudan’s war has deteriorated with such devastating speed. She also considers the impact of regional and external actors and how mediation and conflict prevention are being reshaped in an increasingly fragmented geopolitical landscape.

Rethinking Global Health Governance in a Changing World

In this special episode of MEnbar, recorded on the sidelines of the Doha Forum 2025, Marc Owen Jones speaks with Hanan Balkhy, Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean at the World Health Organization (WHO), about the increasing pressure on global and regional health systems amid deepening crises and declining international support. The discussion examines how recent funding cuts and shifting geopolitical priorities are affecting the WHO’s work across the Eastern Mediterranean region as it faces more conflict and displacement. Dr. Balkhy reflects on the challenge of maintaining health responses in Gaza and Sudan, the pressures on international health governance, and how countries are increasingly being pushed to rethink resilience, cooperation, and national ownership of public health in an uncertain global environment.

EU-GCC Towards a Strategic Partnership

In this special episode of MEnbar, recorded on the sidelines of the Doha Forum 2025, Omar Rahman welcomes the EU Special Representative Ambassador Luigi De Maio for the Gulf region to discuss the growing strategic partnership between the European Union and Gulf countries. The conversation explores how recent regional and global crises have reshaped the EU’s expectations and engagement in the Gulf, and how Europe aims to expand its political and security influence in the region. It also examines differences between the EU and GCC countries on Ukraine and Gaza, Europe’s role in regional conflicts involving Iran and its neighbors, and the opportunities for deeper diplomatic and economic cooperation.