Rising geopolitical rivalry and collapsing international law are together threatening global supply chains. This is pushing countries toward relocating their import/export networks to friendly nations that possess shared values – a phenomenon known as friendshoring. Due to the inherently far-sighted nature of their foreign policies, the Arab Gulf countries are better positioned to leverage friendshoring than their western counterparts.

At the end of the Second World War, many European countries were exhausted from centuries of destructive conflict, including a period of every-man-for-himself trade isolationism during the interwar period. This made the idea of a supranational construct that manages critical production inputs – specifically, coal and steel – acceptable to intense geopolitical rivals such as France and Germany.

Friends reunited: how the Gulf became a trusted global trade partner | The National

Dr. Omar Ahmad Al Ubaydli