Economic reform is key to the future of a region which needs to diversify away from dependency on oil, or a reliance on international funding. There has been both resistance and progress so far.
Bahrain's oil sector is relatively small for the Gulf. So, the kingdom has been an early adopter of economic diversification and has harnessed the advantage of a well-developed education sector.
Israel knows its military operation cannot last forever, so it is racing to either kill or fatally wound the Islamic Republic before the clock runs out
European gas prices have jumped by 30% after some big GCC oil and gas producers cut supplies, and now a vital maritime trade route is being threatened. The stakes have seldom been higher.