Kuwait and Oman mediating policy traditions in rupture with Gulf crisis protagonists

Description

This unprecedented Gulf crisis put two radically different Gulf diplomacies in conflict. A new breaking style came in confrontation with the old Gulf diplomatic tradition symbolised by the elder and most experimented leaders of the region: the Emir of Kuwait and the Sultan of Oman. In order to understand the dramatic Gulf policy transition’s shift, this paper reviews the diplomatic soft power trajectories of Kuwait and Oman. It also examines the impacts this crisis affects their respective domestic situation challenged by the uncertain future of the GCC.

Fatiha Dazi-Héni is Associate Professor at Aalborg University in Denmark. He is a political scientist by training and specialises in the politics of the Middle East. His latest publication is a chapter contribution to Ray Hinnebusch and Omar Imady (eds.), The Syrian Uprising. Domestic Origins and Early Trajectory (Routledge, 2018).