Will Trump put America first and close ‘Open Skies’ to Gulf?

Frank Kane
Updated 06 February 2017
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Will Trump put America first and close ‘Open Skies’ to Gulf?

Arabian Gulf countries have so far been largely left out of the carnage that US President Donald Trump has inflicted on the world.

The Muslim travel ban, the scrapping of trade deals, the proposed tariffs on commerce with some of the US’ closest neighbors, are obviously negative for Gulf countries that believe in and depend on thriving global trade. But they can probably live with the consequences, as much as the rest of a reluctant world.

But there is one issue lying in the new president’s in-tray that could change all that. Sometime pretty soon, Trump will have to rule on the potentially explosive matter of “Open Skies” aviation between the US and the Middle East.

He has it in his power, if he so choses, to deal a body blow to Gulf airlines just as they face critical challenges in other areas: Overcapacity, falling demand and reduced revenue from airfares. There is mounting concern in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha that the president might just hit them hard.

The subsidy row 

Some backstory: Emirates, Etihad and Qatar have carved themselves a dominant position in global aviation by being “super connectors” between the West and the East. Geographical location is one reason, so too is the new generation of aircraft that can make 10-hour-plus trips with ease.

Another reason is that all three offer a level of service that neither American nor European airlines can dream of matching. Schedules, airport infrastructure, and onboard facilities are just way ahead of anything the West can offer. (Some Asian airlines are just as good, incidentally, but Hong Kong and Singapore are at the wrong end of the Mercator world to be a problem for the US.)

The US airlines — notably United, Delta and American — do not like this. They feel that they have a natural right to fly Americans around the world, even if they do not offer the schedule or levels of service the Gulf airlines regard as normal. So they complained to former President Barack Obama about “unfair competition” and “illegal subsidies” by the Arabs, which they alleged put the Gulf airlines in breach of the Open Skies treaties the US has with the rest of the world.

The former president had to take their complaints — backed by a powerful Washington lobby — seriously, and he asked three government departments to consider the allegations. State, commerce and transportation were handed the portfolio of grievances and asked to consider them.

You got the feeling that liberal, cosmopolitan President Obama did not really want to take sides in the dispute and was kicking it into the long grass of DC bureaucracy.

New transport secretary 

Not so the new president. He puts America first, distrusts Muslims and Arabs, and is suspicious of anything that originates east of Maine. The Open Skies deal would seem to be an obvious victim of the new Trump protectionism.

He has found a soulmate in his choice for US secretary of transportation, who will probably have the final say.

Frank Kane

Elaine Chao was this week approved by Congress as head of the department, which has aviation under its remit. She is of Taiwanese origin, with impeccable Republican credentials, and in her spare time sits on the board of Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation, which owns President Trump’s favorite TV channel, Fox News.

Gulf airline officials I have talked to recently say they have no idea which way the Open Skies dispute will turn out. 

Although Chao has given no indication of how she might decide on Open Skies, you might expect her to side with the America First lobby and order the Gulf airlines to change their strategies toward the US.

Her options would range from a complete US withdrawal from the reciprocal agreements that allow the Gulf airlines to fly to the US, to a ban on flying some individual routes, through to an order to restrict future route expansion between the Gulf and US. Either of these would be a serious challenge to the Gulf Three, but especially Emirates, which sees trans-Atlantic aviation as a keystone of its global strategy.

Emirates recently upped the stakes in the dispute by slashing fares to the US and launching a new service between New Jersey’s Newark airport and Athens. Both moves are justified in market terms, but are sure to rile the American lobby.

On the other hand, President Trump might decide to ignore whatever advice he gets from Chao and let things carry on as before. His immigration ban — which does not apply to nationals of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar and Saudi Arabia — is a signal that he can be selective in his policy toward the Middle East, especially when there are Trump business interests at stake.

Gulf airline officials I have talked to recently say they have no idea which way the Open Skies dispute will turn out. But I suspect that now they are fearing, and planning for, the worst.

• Frank Kane is an award-winning business journalist based in Dubai. He can be reached on Twitter @frankkanedubai


US has not seen evidence of Hezbollah cash bunker under Beirut hospital, Pentagon chief says

Updated 23 October 2024
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US has not seen evidence of Hezbollah cash bunker under Beirut hospital, Pentagon chief says

  • “We will continue to collaborate with our Israeli counterparts to gain better fidelity on exactly what they are looking at,” Austin told reporters in Rome
  • Fadi Alameh, a Lebanese lawmaker and the director of Al-Sahel hospital has told Reuters that Israel was making false and slanderous claims

ROME: US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Wednesday that he had not seen evidence that there was a Hezbollah bunker filled with cash built under a hospital in Beirut, adding that Washington would continue to work with Israel to get better insights.
Israel’s military said that Hezbollah has stashed hundreds of millions of dollars in cash and gold in a bunker built under a hospital in Beirut, adding that it would not strike the facility as it keeps up attacks against the group’s financial assets.
“We have not seen evidence of that at this moment. But, you know, we will continue to collaborate with our Israeli counterparts to gain better fidelity on exactly what they are looking at,” Austin told reporters in Rome.
Fadi Alameh, a Lebanese lawmaker with the Shiite Amal Movement party and the director of the hospital in question, Al-Sahel, has told Reuters that Israel was making false and slanderous claims and called on the Lebanese Army to visit and show it had only operating rooms, patients and a morgue.
In a televised statement on Monday, the Israeli military’s chief spokesman said Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, killed by Israel last month, had built the bunker which was designed for lengthy stays.


Algerian musician and producer Eljoee says music ‘wasn’t meant to be commercialized’  

Updated 06 April 2023
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Algerian musician and producer Eljoee says music ‘wasn’t meant to be commercialized’  

  • The Algerian producer and musician has come a long way from learning to play guitar by drawing strings on a piece of wood
  • To start afresh, Eljoee moved to the coastal city of Marseille in France, where he has set up his studio

DUBAI: France-based Algerian musician and producer Eljoee (real name Billel Mehsen) seems to have been destined to play the guitar. When he was in school, his music teacher nicknamed him Joe, after Joe King, the guitarist with US rock band The Fray. That name stuck — with friends and family using it — and he added some Arabic flavor by putting ‘El’ before it to create his own version of the Arabic term ‘Eljaw,’ meaning a mood or a feeling in the air.    

Growing up in Blida, Algeria, he was obsessed with music, thanks to the sounds of his father’s collection, which included artists like Bob Marley, Ray Charles, and ABBA. But the only relative who owned an instrument was his uncle, whose guitar Eljoee was not allowed to touch. So he had to be inventive.  

 

 

“I started to learn a guitar without a guitar,” Eljoee tells Arab News. “I couldn’t buy a guitar because I come from a simple family. I had a piece of wood, and I drew the strings of a guitar on it and I started to practice with my hands. I would watch tutorials on YouTube. I spent one year practicing guitar without a guitar.”   

Eventually, Eljoee did get his hands on an actual guitar round at a friend’s house. And when he became a member of a government-supported youth club, equipped with musical instruments, he was able to play regularly. He dropped out of school and joined a band called Bara3im Thugs. He was determined to make a career in music. But in a country where the arts weren’t considered a ‘real’ profession, that meant going against his father’s wishes.  

“He thought I was too young and I would not continue my studies. Well, he was right. . . He even broke one of my guitars,” Eljoee says with a laugh. “It was a bit intense, but I don’t regret what happened to me. It has a meaning.” 

 

 

To start afresh, Eljoee moved to the coastal city of Marseille in France, where he has set up his studio. Close to North Africa, Marseille is a place where Algerian raï music historically flourished due to its Maghrebi communities. “It feels like Algeria — the sea, the sun, the people,” he says. “I’m home, but far from home.”   

Eljoee compares music production to film directing; he searches for the right combination of elements to compose the perfect track. He acts as a “link between the artist and the art,” he adds. Eljoee confesses that he hasn’t listened to new music in the past two years as he worries it might influence his own. He prefers listening to old tunes, ethnic music, and Coldplay. The nature of the music industry has changed, he believes; where music once used to be about art, now it’s about going viral.  

“It was music that came from artists that lived the story of the music. It was emotional. It wasn’t meant to be commercialized,” he says. “Nowadays, I get tons of emails and calls and the first thing they say is, ‘I want a viral song.’ I’m not an algorithm. I’m just a guy who plays instruments and arranges things. I don’t know how to make a viral song. Maybe songs become viral because (they are) pure.”   

 

 

During COVID-19, Eljoee was at his most experimental, remixing songs by North African music legends such as Cheikha Rimitti, Cheb Khaled, and Cheb Hasni. He has also collaborated with the younger generation of Arab artists, including Lebanese singer Bashaar Al-Jawad in “Bailamos (We Dance),” a catchy, upbeat, infatuation-themed hit, sung in Algerian dialect.      

His most popular track is “Hiya Hiya,” inspired by one of Moroccan aita (‘call’ or ‘cry’) icon Haja El Hamdaouia’s songs that is likely about a woman talking about herself, facing the sea in the fear that a man — either her son or lover — will leave her.  

 

 

Eljoee slowed the tempo down, adding a gentle electronic beat. He stayed true to the song’s origin by adding Maghrebi percussion, and added new vocals by Moroccan singer Chaama, whom he discovered online. Mixing her vocals into the song was a moment of magic, he says. “It was, like, 3 a.m. I worked on it for seven hours. We felt it was going to be good.” It’s certainly proven popular, racking up over 87 million views on YouTube and becoming that elusive thing: a viral hit. 

Eljoee is 28, but feels his story is just getting started. “I lived a lot of traumas in my life. Music will always be my only way to express my feelings,” he says. “Music is my refuge, my therapist.”   


Gulf states prepare for passenger flights resumption amid coronavirus pandemic

Updated 13 July 2020
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Gulf states prepare for passenger flights resumption amid coronavirus pandemic

  • Wizz Air Abu Dhabi's tickets can be bought through wizzair.com as well as its mobile app, with fares starting at $35
  • Kuwait prepares to resume its commercial flights in August

DUBAI: Bahrain said all travelers arriving in its international airport will be required to pay the cost of their mandatory coronavirus testing at $80 starting July 21, state news agency BNA reported.
The health ministry said the country’s citizens and residents will still be entitled to free coronavirus medical treatment in line with international standards.
Travelers will get the option to pay in advance via the ‘BeAware Bahrain’ mobile app to ease the payment process. Cash payments will also be accepted.
The decision excludes cabin crew, diplomatic or other official travelers and those arriving from medical travel from paying. Transit passengers, according to the health ministry, will not be required to test for COVID-19 or quarantine.
Meanwhile UAE’s Wizz Air Abu Dhabi announced it will operate two new Airbus A321neo aircraft and offer six routes from Abu Dhabi starting Oct. 1 of 2020, state news agency WAM reported.
Tickets can be bought through the airline’s website wizzair.com as well as its mobile app, with fares starting at $35.
The airline will also activate its Arabic website and mobile app to allow Arabs to book tickets online.
Meanwhile, Kuwait prepares to resume its commercial flights in August, state news agency KUNA reported. Both ministries of service affairs and national assembly affairs said it is important to provide necessary high-quality services to travelers in all terminals.


India's economic image receives dent

Updated 21 June 2016
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India's economic image receives dent

The decision by India’s Reserve Bank Gov. Raghuram Rajan to stand down at the end of his term and return to the United States is an embarrassment for India’s fiscal ambitions on the global stage. Rajan was handpicked by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and even given the wink that he could be elevated to a cabinet rank. Modi had plans to use the Rajan reputation to advantage if one is to believe the rumors which ricochet off the corridors of power in New Delhi.
What then went wrong and slowed down India’s emerging fiscal power juggernaut?
Clearly, Arun Jetley and his tacit if not needlessly shrill support from Subramaniam Swamy who had no real reason to declare war conspired to keep Rajan at bay and clip his wings.
In all fairness Rajan’s outspoken manner and his willingness to give opinions on issues unrelated to his role fed the hostile machine as Jetley adroitly allowed Swamy to create a furore every few days. Rajan spoke of corrupt politicians, the obtaining of wasteful educational degrees, mocked the way the government was allowing inflation to eat into the common man’s disposable income and generally was to put it bluntly, blunt.
Also working against his tactics was former Reserve Bank Gov. Gurumurthy and this triumvirate vexed Modi enough to backtrack on using Rajan as his ace in the hole to attract foreign investment and give credibility to the Modi era economic policies. The shabbiness of the departure hastened by Rajan himself shows the huge gap that had formed between him and Modi.
The prime minister, who had once referred to Rajan as the best "economics teacher" on the planet was clearly motivated and irritated by Rajan’s criticisms of current governance and piqued that his choice was putting his government to the sword.
While Rajan will disappear into history and Jetley and co. will promise to fill in the void on the global stage the fact is that Modi displayed relatively thin skin and was unable to take either the "betrayal" as he saw it by Rajan’s honesty and must now contend with the fallout.
To that extent he is on the hot spot because he now has to depend that much more on Jetley and also contend with the naked ambitions of Swamy who will most definitely make a bid to be a considered replacement.
Thing is the world may not be interested in India’s realpolitiks and intrigue and be a little more concerned with the message that dumping Rajan sends out.
One that underscores the promise of a robust economic revolution.
One that indicates a fall back to old practices that have proven to have failed.
One that stresses the fact the Modi brooks no resistance even if he has to let the best man go.
For India the doubt that the more things change the more they stay the same.
True, Rajan is not indispensable but was he thrown under the bus for bigger interests and his refusal to lower interest rates and let the big boys of business pay less on their huge loans?

Saudi Arabia on a new path

Talal Al-Harbi
Updated 30 April 2016
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Saudi Arabia on a new path

Last Monday, Saudi Arabia unveiled an ambitious long-term economic plan to make the Kingdom less reliant on oil. The plan, titled “Saudi Vision 2030,” will be implemented over the coming 15 years with the aim to build a “prosperous and sustainable economic future.” In addition to regulatory, budget and policy changes, the planned economic diversification also involved selling about 5 percent of shares of the giant Aramco oil company, localizing industrial equipment sector, creating 90,000 jobs, raising the share of non-oil exports in gross domestic product from the current16 percent to 50 percent.
Other reforms include creation of the “largest sovereign wealth fund in the world,” building high-quality tourism attractions, lowering the rate of unemployment among the young population from 11.6 percent to 7 percent and increasing women quota in the work force to 30 percent.
Economic experts are busy analyzing prospects of implementing this plan especially when oil prices are at an all-time low.
The announcement took some observers by surprise. However, those who know the Kingdom and its leadership were not surprised at all. Since the day Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman ascended the throne, he has been busy taking decisive measures.
Bold and decisive, as one expert has described him, King Salman is determined to put the country on the right track by reengineering local institutions and councils, shaking the hierarchy of the executive power and asserting the Kingdom’s role as leader of the Arab and Muslim worlds.
The Saudi Vision 2030 is the brainchild of Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. While announcing the economic plan and during his interview with Al-Arabiya, his intellectual potential and economic know-how were crystal clear. Anthony Cordesman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies said, “He has a very good group of advisers and the plan is not a desperate but a deliberate preventive measure.”
It was clear that the deputy crown prince wasn’t gambling because the future of the whole nation is at stake. To those who are skeptical about the success of the plan, he has proved that he is not beating about the bush but in fact it was evident that he was fully confident when he said that the forefathers had run the country without oil and “we can live in 2020 without oil” and that the Kingdom has three points of strength: Its Arab and Muslim depth, its investment strength and its geographic location.
His interests were also clear: Improving quality of life for the Saudi citizens, promoting culture, entertainment and tourism, building museums and excavating ancient civilizations in the Arabian Peninsula.
He has also proved to be sensitive toward the poor as is evident from his statement, “It is unacceptable that power and water subsidies should go to the rich.”
To him, there are no exemptions: “Power and water tariffs will be applied to princes and ministers. Any subsidies will be for the disadvantaged and low-income people…”
This is an indication that the leadership is determined to fight the opportunists who were amassing wealth through corrupt means at the cost of the country’s economic security and its international reputation.