Anna Jacobs Senior Analyst, Gulf states Doha, Qatar Please submit all media inquiries to media@crisisgroup.org or call +32 (0) 2 536 00 71 Crisis Group Role As Crisis Group’s Senior Analyst for the Gulf states, Anna Jacobs covers the foreign policies of the Gulf Cooperation Council states, with a focus on regional security and conflict mitigation efforts in the Gulf region and in Africa. Professional Background Anna has been living and working as a foreign policy researcher in the Middle East since 2011. She specialises in the foreign policies of Gulf Arab states, with a focus on the Gulf region and Africa. Anna is also a Non-Resident Fellow at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington (AGSIW) where she has written on Gulf states foreign policies in Africa and the Mediterranean region. Her work has been published by the Brookings Institution, Foreign Policy, The Washington Post, The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, Al Sharq Strategic Research, and elsewhere. Prior to joining Crisis Group in July 2022, Anna worked as a senior political officer focusing on Track 2 dialogues in the Gulf region for The Shaikh Group. She also worked as the Senior Research Assistant at the Brookings Doha Center, as the Academic Director for the SIT Study Abroad journalism program in Morocco, as a lecturer in political economy and media at Rabat’s Ecole de Gouvernance et d’Economie, and as a political risk consultant. She received a Master of Philosophy in Modern Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Oxford where she specialised in political economy, foreign policy, and Arabic. She is a Fulbright Scholar and a graduate of the University of Virginia. Areas of Expertise Foreign policies of the Gulf states Gulf and Red Sea regional security International Relations of the Middle East and North Africa Languages French Arabic In The News 24 Aug 2023 Gulf countries are diversifying their political and economic relations as the world order becomes increasingly multipolar. Middle East Eye Anna Jacobs Senior Analyst, Gulf states 17 May 2023 It's important to remember that [Syrian president] Assad's return to the Arab League is a symbolic measure to begin the process of ending his regional isolation. AFP Anna Jacobs Senior Analyst, Gulf states 4 May 2023 Saudi Arabia is seeking to assert itself more and more on the international stage through mediation and raising its diplomatic profile. CNN Anna Jacobs Senior Analyst, Gulf states 13 Apr 2023 The U.S. and Europe have made it clear that they do not agree with Arab states normalizing with the Assad regime, but there doesn’t seem to be much they can do about it. New York Times Anna Jacobs Senior Analyst, Gulf states 6 Apr 2023 Many experts still assume that whoever is in the White House will guide Saudi policy on Iran, but that simply isn’t true today. New York Times Anna Jacobs Senior Analyst, Gulf states 23 Mar 2023 Lowering the temperature with Iran is a smart way to lower tensions across the region and mitigate some of the proxy battles surrounding Saudi Arabia. Al Monitor Anna Jacobs Senior Analyst, Gulf states Latest Updates Commentary / Middle East & North Africa 14 September 2023 Understanding Saudi Arabia’s Recalibrated Foreign Policy Also available in العربية Commentary / Middle East & North Africa 12 July 2023 Gulf Arab Reconciliation Hides Simmering Tensions Commentary / Middle East & North Africa 19 April 2023 The Impact of the Saudi-Iranian Rapprochement on Middle East Conflicts Also available in العربية Q&A / Middle East & North Africa 17 March 2023 How Beijing Helped Riyadh and Tehran Reach a Detente Also available in العربية Commentary / Middle East & North Africa 03 October 2022 The Myth of an Emerging “Mideast NATO”