On April 28, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrived in Saudi Arabia to meet with controversial de-facto leader Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman (MBS), a landmark visit signaling that the two leaders had decided to rebuild relations after a long period of rivalry| The Soufan Center
In an effort to convince Saudi Arabia to establish diplomatic relations with Israel, the United States is reportedly prepared to grant the kingdom major security guarantees enjoyed by only a select few U.S. allies outside of NATO.| The Soufan Center
In late June, MBS conducted a regional tour in an attempt to burnish his leadership credentials in advance of U.S. President Biden’s July 16 visit to the Kingdom. MBS visited two key allies, Egypt and Jordan, both of which seek financial support and additional investment from the Kingdom. King Abdullah II| The Soufan Center
The civil conflict in Yemen is nearing its ninth year since the Iran-backed Houthi movement, energized by the 2011 Arab Spring uprising that toppled Yemen’s longtime strongman, President Ali Abdullah Saleh, moved out of its northern strongholds to capture Sanaa, the capital| The Soufan Center
U.S. and international officials, evaluating an expansion of mediation efforts and direct talks between the conflict parties and their outside backers, express cautious optimism that an eight-month truce during 2022 can be formally reinstated, paving the way for a possible political solution to the conflict in Yemen| The Soufan Center
In late April, Iran revealed that it held a fifth round of talks with Saudi Arabia in Baghdad, Iraq, the site of most of the previous rounds of meetings in 2021. Iranian media reported that the latest talks were attended by "senior officials from the secretariat of Iran's Supreme National Security Council| The Soufan Center
On at least three occasions since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, the Zaidi Shia Houthi movement in Yemen has launched volleys of Iran-supplied land attack cruise missiles and armed drones toward Israel, which is over 1,000 miles from Yemen.| The Soufan Center
The Houthi movement has progressively escalated its involvement in the Israel-Hamas war, even amid its unresolved conflict with the Saudi and United Arab Emirates (UAE)-backed Republic of Yemen government.| The Soufan Center