The Middle East is heading for a major showdown, if statements made by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) and UAE’s minister of Foreign Affairs Gargash are to be taken literally. Over the last couple of weeks, the Gulf region has been on a rollercoaster ride. Risk analysts are struggling to deal with the dramatically changing geopolitical and financial environment while a direct military confrontation between the Saudi-led alliance and Iran’s proxies is around the corner. The signals coming from the Saudi capital Riyadh are still the same; Saudi Vision 2030 and the Aramco IPO are on track. The media remains skeptical about the unforeseen crackdown on corruption, a week after the so-called “Davos in the Desert” financial get-together in Riyadh (October 24-26), where 3,500 CEOs and financial wizards convened. The fallout of the direct attack on Saudi Arabia’s financial moguls and construction giants, such as Prince Al-Waleed […]