Will the Gulf pay for its own protection from Iran?
Iran could reportedly receive up to $300 billion in a reconstruction fund for its battered economy as part of its interim peace deal with the US, which is expected to be formally signed in Switzerland on Friday. While the structure and management of the potential fund are unclear, US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said that the US would not be the one paying for it. Instead, that money would apparently come at least in part from Gulf nations. During the conflict, Iran launched thousands of missiles and drones toward Gulf states like the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia in an effort to exert pressure on US-aligned economies that have spent years positioning themselves as global investment and tourism hubs. If those same states ultimately participate in the fund, they could find themselves paying for protection against the very threat that imperiled their security in the first place.
China wants to keep investment within the Great Wall
China has been clamping down on foreign investments by its citizens as it grows concerned about capital outflows. Over the past month, Beijing has instructed several Hong Kong and Singapore-based financial firms to close accounts held by mainland clients within two years, and the Chinese social media platform RedNote also said it will throttle posts that teach users how to invest in US markets. For years, Chinese retail investors favored domestic real estate. But after the 2021 housing market crash, many began looking overseas for safer returns. Capital outflows surged, reaching a record $809 billion in 2025, and Hong Kong even surpassed Switzerland as the world’s largest wealth hub. By tightening controls, Beijing hopes to keep more capital at home to support future spending on technology and infrastructure.
Sink or swim? Trump and Modi to meet amidst tensions
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with US President Donald Trump today at the G7 summit in France. Relations between the two have been rocky in recent months, most recently after US strikes last week on commercial tankers it said violated its naval blockade of Iran killed three Indian sailors. Plus, the US imposed punitive tariffs on India in August to discourage it from buying Russian oil. Then, India was pushed to the edge of a fuel crisis by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which the majority of its crude imports pass. Trump temporarily lifted some sanctions on Russian crude to allow fuel-strapped countries like India amid the disruption in the Hormuz, but relations have remained uneasy. While Trump and Modi are discussing the fate of a long-awaited trade deal during their sit-down, the details are unlikely to be hashed out, as the two have a lot to work through.
