Experts in the News

A book by Middle East fellow Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, "Qatar and the Gulf Crisis" (Oxford University Press, 2020), was featured on The New York Times' list of books to read in advance of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's stay in Europe represents a “highly symbolic move past his post-Khashoggi isolation,” said Middle East fellow Kristian Coates Ulrichsen. “While there has not been any formal coordination of policy in the ‘West’ against Mohammed bin Salman since 2018, the fact is that he has not visited any European or North American country since Khashoggi’s killing."

Fellow Kristian Coates Ulrichsen predicted President Biden won't make much headway in lowering oil prices during his upcoming trip to the Middle East. “I just don't see that the Saudis and the UAE are willing to break out of the OPEC+ framework,” he said.

President Biden’s upcoming trip to Saudi Arabia will likely draw a clear message from Riyadh: "Move the conversation away from human rights to focus on the positive sides of the relationship: energy and investments,” said Middle East fellow Kristian Coates Ulrichsen.

Saudi Arabia's latest venture "is consistent with the way the Saudis have been using sport over the past five years," said fellow Kristian Ulrichsen "to try to project an image of the new Saudi Arabia, to change the narrative away from Khashoggi and Yemen."