How trains can transform Persian Gulf politics and global security

Once completed, the 2,177-kilometer GCC Railway will connect six Gulf kingdoms and provide alternative routes to Europe and Asia.

By: Stacy D. VanDeveer, UMass Boston and Firmesk Rahim, UMass Boston, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: August 5, 2026

Words: 1,330

Last Updated: 1 week, 6 days ago

By Stacy D. VanDeveer, UMass Boston and Firmesk Rahim, UMass Boston

The crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, wider tensions in the Red Sea and the oil price spikes these circumstances occassion have made one thing abundantly clear: Gulf countries and global markets are dependent on vulnerable maritime routes.

But while national leaders and diplomats work to free up crucial waterways through which much of the world’s trade passes, another transport …

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