Event Reports

Young Parliamentarians Programme (2025-2026)

Strengthening Youth Civic Engagement in Bahrain

Encouraging informed civic engagement among younger generations is an important component of strengthening constructive public dialogue. The eighth edition of the Young Parliamentarian Programme (YPP) in Bahrain brought together young participants for a series of workshops, expert discussions, and simulation exercises exploring govern-ance, media, and policymaking. The programme concluded with a youth forum, where participants presented legisla-tive proposals before members of the Shura Council and the Council of Representatives.

From Barriers to Partnership: EU-GCC Leadership to Strengthen the International Economic Order

Two-day workshop in Riyadh

As threats to the positive-sum, mutually beneficial trading relations underpinning the international economic order of the past 50 years multiply, the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung and Prince Saud Al Faisal Institute for Diplomatic Studies organised a workshop in Riyadh to discuss how Saudi-German and GCC-EU leadership can address and arrest this damaging momentum.

Gulf-EU Relations in the Age of Strategic Isolation

Panel Discussion at the Doha Forum 2025

As geopolitical fragmentation deepens and elements of strategic isolation re-emerge in international politics, relations between the Gulf states and the European Union are gaining renewed relevance. Faced with regional crises and shift-ing power balances, both regions share growing interests in strengthening cooperation across security, energy, eco-nomic, and diplomatic domains. How can Europe and the Gulf translate these shared interests into a stronger and more effective partnership?

State of Play: Strategic Competition and Regional Agency in the Gulf

Roundtable on great-power dynamics and middle-power manoeuvring in Qatar

As the global order shifts and rivalries intensify, the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have become a key arena where great-power dynamics intersect with a growing desire for regional agency and multi-alignment.

Stepwise and Return Migration between the Gulf, Europe and North America

How do GCC Countries Fare in the Global Competition for Talent?

As Gulf economies pursue ambitious diversification agendas, attracting and retaining highly skilled professionals has become increasingly important. Yet many migrants still view the region as a temporary stage rather than a long-term destination. So why do highly skilled migrants leave the Gulf? And why do some return? Experts gathered in Riyadh to discuss the phenomenon of stepwise and return migration linking the Gulf with Europe and North America, exploring how legal uncertainty, career mobility, and long-term settlement prospects shape migrants’ evolving mobility strategies.

Shared Interests, Shared Actions in Maritime Security

Securing the waterways around the Arabian Peninsula

Headlined by the Houthis and the Islamic Republic of Iran, threats to the waterways surrounding the Arabian Peninsula are more acute than ever. As these risks multiply, the traditional guarantor of maritime security the world over – the United States – preoccupies itself more and more with its own hemisphere, leaving the task of reliably safeguarding passage through Bab Al Mandab and the Strait of Hormuz increasingly in the hands of regional powers. How can Europe, the Gulf states, and other impacted countries work together to address this challenge?

The Social Impacts of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030: Continuity and Change

Workshop in Berlin

On 08 July 2025, KAS hosted a delegation of young Saudis from the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies (KFCRIS) for a workshop in Berlin about the social transformation taking place in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia under Vision 2030.

German Arab Gulf Dialogue on Security and Cooperation in Berlin

Dialogue even in times of crisis

Amid the conflict between Israel and Iran, leading representatives from the Gulf states and Germany gathered for the 7th German-Arab Gulf Dialogue organised by the KAS and DAFG. Although the conference focused on overcoming current challenges in the Middle East and Europe, it also highlighted opportunities and potential for closer cooperation: Especially in times of crisis, stronger cooperation between Germany and the Gulf states is necessary.

Forging Stronger Ties between Germany and Qatar

Insights from Norbert Lammert’s and Gerhard Wahlers’ visit to Qatar underscores shared priorities in diplomacy, development, and culture.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE, Economic and Political Heavyweights in the Middle East

Dialogue programme for four members of the German Bundestag

In April 2025, KAS organised a delegation trip to Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai for four CDU parliamentarians from the newly elected German Bundestag. The first such trip since February's federal elections, the dialogue programme sent a powerful signal: Germany wants to bolster its cooperation with the Gulf states under the new, CDU-led government in Berlin. The delegation's Saudi and Emirati interlocutors welcomed this message with open arms.