A Future for the Gulf: Turning Dialogue into Regional Security
The hour after detection G ulf security is usually discussed in terms of deterrence, military capability and external partnerships. All three matter. But when a crisis begins, the deciding factor can be more modest: whether governments can talk to each other quickly, while the facts are still unclear. During my work in diplomacy, strategic partnerships and international negotiations, I have seen how quickly uncertainty can become a security problem. Several governments may observe the same vessel movement or the same disruption to critical infrastructure and reach different conclusions. Detection is only the beginning. What happens in the hour afterwards is harder: who communicates with whom, which information reaches decision-makers, and how quickly misunderstandings can be corrected. Managing that interval is a core element of strategic resilience. The proposal T his is why the proposed Muscat Process deserves serious attention. Currently advanced through a Group of Fri...