The Gulf states and South-East Asia

The Arab states of the Persian Gulf – Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain – are six states with similar nature, economy and system. Except for the islands of Bahrain, all lie on the Arabian peninsula. Their position is favourable: where Asia, Africa and Europe meet, beside international sea routes. The largest state is Saudi Arabia (about 2.15 million km² and about 35 million people); Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain are very small. The form of government is monarchy: absolute monarchies in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman, constitutional monarchies in Kuwait and Bahrain, and the UAE is a federation of seven emirates. The climate is tropical, hot and dry: above +50 °C in summer and under 100 mm of rain a year; the main natural zone is tropical desert. There are no permanent rivers, so water is scarce, and desalination plants give a large part of the drinking water. The greatest wealth is oil and gas: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the UAE are rich in oil, and Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE in gas; the region is very important for world energy. The share of foreign workers is high: in the UAE up to 80–90 %, and a majority in Qatar too; they come mainly from South Asia and North Africa. Urbanisation is very high, close to 100 % in Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain. Mecca and Medina are sacred to Muslims and millions come each year for hajj and umrah. GDP per person is among the highest in the world. On oil and gas, chemicals, petrochemicals and metallurgy have grown; the states are now diversifying their economies: finance, trade, air transport, tourism and renewable energy. Farming is limited by lack of water, the date palm is the traditional crop and drip irrigation is widely used.