The Lebanese prime minister Saad Hariri's arrival in Iran dissipates theories claiming a Sunni exploitation of the Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's visit to Lebanon, in contrast to the Shiite exploitation of the Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit to the country earlier this year, observed Ahmad Ayash in an article for Lebanese daily Annahar.
It is obvious that Mr Hariri's Iranian visit isn't good news for Hizbollah and its allies. Sources from Hizbollah's bloc tried to undermine the official visit's effects, expecting them to be "simple and insubstantial."
Hizbollah and its allies have been repeatedly inviting Mr Hariri to sever all ties with the Special Tribunal for Lebanon as a pre-requisite for support and allegiance. Since the request is impossible, Tehran got closer to Mr Hariri.
What benefits would Iran gain from Mr Hariri's visit at a time when its ally Hizbollah is facing a confrontation with the Tribunal and its impeding indictment?
Talk of Iranian extremism or rigidity, reflected in Hizbollah's positions, faded away with images of the sweeping hospitality the Iranian regime bestowed upon its Lebanese guest.
These images serve a purpose that extends beyond the boundaries of Lebanon to reach the world closely watching Tehran's every move in all issues threatening world peace.
Turkey and Iran for a new Middle East
In a comparison between the Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's state visit to Beirut recently and the Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's official visit to the city last week, "it could be concluded that Turks and Iranians have no intention to go head to head or compete for power in the Middle East," wrote the columnist Saad Mehio in an article for the Emirati daily Al Khaleej.
It is true that both countries differ in terms of direction. However, this divergence isn't translating as a conflict of power in the region. On the contrary, it appears that at this historical stage that both leaders agree on taking their share of the Middle East scene from Israel rather than from one another.
This is creating a unique situation in the history of the Middle East as in the past, the rise of one of these two regional powers necessitated the fall of the other. Otherwise, in case they rose together, confrontation was inevitable.
Turkey and Iran are rising together without any confrontation looming in the horizon. Both nations are keen on cooperation, although the first is a member of Nato and the second is seeking to establish an Islamic military alliance against the West.
The wise collaboration between Ankara and Tehran merits applause since it contributes to the revival of the natural Islamic identity of the Middle East scene.
Copts must be treated as equal citizens
Religious or sectarian clashes are a common everyday occurrence. When they perpetuate and escalate, they become an issue.
Does this apply to the Coptic-Islamic clashes occurring recently in Egypt? asked the columnist Abdul Rahman al Rashed in an article for the pan-Arab newspaper Asharq al Awsat.
The real crux of the issue is still unclear, but it is believed to be restricted since only a few confrontations took place in the immense Egyptian community where eight million Copts live among a population of 80 million. However, statistics in this case can't be a trusty indicator, as political encounters aren't measured in numbers but in effect.
Eight million Copts form a sizable population that can't be treated as a minority or under the concept of tolerance. The concept of tolerance in this case is offensive. Tolerance is for strangers, while the Copts are no strangers in their country. They are citizens equal in rights and obligations to their Muslim counterparts.
Sectarian discord is the trait of this day and age in our region. It is a natural historical evolution that mirrors internal movements and currents. It becomes serious when overlooked as an unalarming occurrence.
Egyptian authorities must heed the dangers of a possible political exploitation of the Coptic issue to serve opposing internal or external powers.
Putin is preparing to return to the Kremlin
Big dreams preoccupy Vladimir Putin as he prepares to return to the Kremlin at the end of Dmitry Medvedev's term as president of the Russian Federation, observed columnist Mazen Hammad in a comment for the Qatari daily Al Watan.
Mr Putin will not let his dreams slip away; he is working diligently to seize them and transform them into realities that would support his next term in power.
His European dream was to link the European continent's economy to the Russian economy so that together they could form a liberated commercial space that produces trillions of dollars and spans from Portugal to Russia.
Upon a recent visit to Berlin, Mr Putin published an article in a German newspaper that can be viewed as a political statement about his vision for Russia's future relationship with the Europeans.
He believes that the current level of cooperation between Russia and Europe isn't commensurate with the economic challenges they face. A strategic alliance can be reached between Russia and European countries in various fields such as industry, technology, nuclear power and logistics.
Mr Putin's courtship of Europe could prompt independent European governments to join the promise to improve European and Russian incomes.
* Digest compiled by Racha Makarem
rmakarem@thenational.ae
Day 1 results:
Open Men (bonus points in brackets)
New Zealand 125 (1) beat UAE 111 (3)
India 111 (4) beat Singapore 75 (0)
South Africa 66 (2) beat Sri Lanka 57 (2)
Australia 126 (4) beat Malaysia -16 (0)
Open Women
New Zealand 64 (2) beat South Africa 57 (2)
England 69 (3) beat UAE 63 (1)
Australia 124 (4) beat UAE 23 (0)
New Zealand 74 (2) beat England 55 (2)
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
Five expert hiking tips
Always check the weather forecast before setting off
Make sure you have plenty of water
Set off early to avoid sudden weather changes in the afternoon
Wear appropriate clothing and footwear
Take your litter home with you
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Vidaamuyarchi
Director: Magizh Thirumeni
Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra
Rating: 4/5
'Shakuntala Devi'
Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra
Director: Anu Menon
Rating: Three out of five stars
Results
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (Dirt) 1,600m; Winner: RB Kings Bay, Abdul Aziz Al Balushi (jockey), Helal Al Alawi (trainer)
7.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: AF Ensito, Fernando Jara, Mohamed Daggash
8pm: Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,400m; Winner: AF Sourouh, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
8.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,800m; Winner: Baaher, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel
9pm: Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Mootahady, Antonio Fresu, Eric Lemartinel
9.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh70,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Dubai Canal, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar
10pm: Al Ain Cup – Prestige (PA) Dh100,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Harrab, Bernardo Pinheiro, Majed Al Jahouri
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Bookshops: A Reader's History by Jorge Carrión (translated from the Spanish by Peter Bush),
Biblioasis
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
'Top Gun: Maverick'
Rating: 4/5
Directed by: Joseph Kosinski
Starring: Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Miles Teller, Glen Powell, Ed Harris
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDate%20started%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202020%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Khaldoon%20Bushnaq%20and%20Tariq%20Seksek%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Abu%20Dhabi%20Global%20Market%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20HealthTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20100%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%20to%20date%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2415%20million%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The biog
Name: Samar Frost
Born: Abu Dhabi
Hobbies: Singing, music and socialising with friends
Favourite singer: Adele
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESmartCrowd%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2018%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESiddiq%20Farid%20and%20Musfique%20Ahmed%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%20%2F%20PropTech%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%24650%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2035%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20A%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EVarious%20institutional%20investors%20and%20notable%20angel%20investors%20(500%20MENA%2C%20Shurooq%2C%20Mada%2C%20Seedstar%2C%20Tricap)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47