US President Donald Trump delivers the 2018 State of the Union address as Vice President Mike Pence and then speaker of the House of Representatives Paul Ryan look on. AFP
US President Donald Trump delivers the 2018 State of the Union address as Vice President Mike Pence and then speaker of the House of Representatives Paul Ryan look on. AFP
US President Donald Trump delivers the 2018 State of the Union address as Vice President Mike Pence and then speaker of the House of Representatives Paul Ryan look on. AFP
US President Donald Trump delivers the 2018 State of the Union address as Vice President Mike Pence and then speaker of the House of Representatives Paul Ryan look on. AFP

Trump needs to redouble efforts with Middle East allies, says top Republican Paul Ryan


Kelsey Warner
  • English
  • Arabic

The next US administration needs to improve relations with its Middle East allies, a top Republican has urged.

Paul Ryan said US President Donald Trump or his Democratic rival should focus on political, security and trade alliances with the UAE and other states.

The former presidential hopeful also predicted further "decoupling" from China by the US, particularly over technology, and more economic conflict.

“In a second Trump term, there will be a redoubling effort to build out our Middle East strategic alliance," he told an audience at the annual Milken Institute summit in Abu Dhabi.

"This means we need more trade agreements – UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia. I’d ultimately like to see a GCC-wide trade agreement.”

The US has existing trade deals with Bahrain and Oman.

Mr Trump has repeatedly talked of the need to disengage from Middle East conflicts and pursued isolationist policies, but he has been active in containing Iran and bolstered US forces amid regional tensions.

Mr Ryan, who has clashed with Mr Trump and borne the brunt of late-night Twitter tirades from the president, appeared to strike a conciliatory note when asked about a second term.

“What if we go from a Trump administration to, God forbid, a Bernie Sanders administration?," he asked.

Mr Ryan, who stepped back from politics and now serves on the board of Fox News, said the next administration must support its Middle East allies in tackling extremism and in trade, peace and prosperity.

"We have to maximise and institutionalise our relationships," he said.

Mr Ryan also spoke of the state of the American dream.

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Milken Summit 2020 - in pictures

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Children in America today are often not better off than their parents.

"This is a challenge we have to confront," Mr Ryan said.

He said that despite low unemployment, there was a need to “ease the polarisation” of society.

"Political success is measured on provocation and entertainment, both by the Republican and Democratic party," Mr Ryan said.

"You overcome this by making inclusive politics, emphasise the best in people, not the worst in people.

"People need to choose to embrace this and we have a long way to go to get there.

"It's not the worst time to be out of Congress," he joked.

Expert input

If you had all the money in the world, what’s the one sneaker you would buy or create?

“There are a few shoes that have ‘grail’ status for me. But the one I have always wanted is the Nike x Patta x Parra Air Max 1 - Cherrywood. To get a pair in my size brand new is would cost me between Dh8,000 and Dh 10,000.” Jack Brett

“If I had all the money, I would approach Nike and ask them to do my own Air Force 1, that’s one of my dreams.” Yaseen Benchouche

“There’s nothing out there yet that I’d pay an insane amount for, but I’d love to create my own shoe with Tinker Hatfield and Jordan.” Joshua Cox

“I think I’d buy a defunct footwear brand; I’d like the challenge of reinterpreting a brand’s history and changing options.” Kris Balerite

 “I’d stir up a creative collaboration with designers Martin Margiela of the mixed patchwork sneakers, and Yohji Yamamoto.” Hussain Moloobhoy

“If I had all the money in the world, I’d live somewhere where I’d never have to wear shoes again.” Raj Malhotra

French business

France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.

Company Profile

Founders: Tamara Hachem and Yazid Erman
Based: Dubai
Launched: September 2019
Sector: health technology
Stage: seed
Investors: Oman Technology Fund, angel investor and grants from Sharjah's Sheraa and Ma'an Abu Dhabi

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CHATGPT%20ENTERPRISE%20FEATURES
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WRESTLING HIGHLIGHTS
SQUADS

India
Virat Kohli (captain), Rohit Sharma (vice-captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wicketkeeper), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shardul Thakur

New Zealand
Kane Williamson (captain), Martin Guptill, Colin Munro, Ross Taylor, Tom Latham (wicketkeeper), Henry Nicholls, Ish Sodhi, George Worker, Glenn Phillips, Matt Henry, Colin de Grandhomme, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Adam Milne, Trent Boult

Evacuations to France hit by controversy
  • Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
  • Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
  • The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
  • Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
  • It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
  • Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
  • Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France