Asian shares were mixed Tuesday as traders weighed the latest rise in U.S.-Iran tensions, while oil prices slipped and U.S. stocks gave back part of their record-breaking rally. Behind the market chatter, the real machinery of power was on display: the U.S. Navy’s seizure of an Iranian-flagged cargo ship threw a second round of talks with Iran into doubt, while Gulf states and their allies argued over an Arab League they say has failed to act decisively.
Who Pays When Power Moves
The price for Brent crude oil remained above $95, slipping 0.4% to $95.10 per barrel, while U.S. benchmark crude oil lost 0.9% to $86.66 per barrel. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 climbed 1.1% to 59,485.54 on strong gains for tech-related companies like Tokyo Electron, which rose 4.4%, and SoftBank Group Corp., which gained 5.5%. South Korea’s Kospi jumped 1.8% to 6,327.73 and Taiwan’s Taiex advanced 1.7%. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong edged 0.1% lower to 26,382.30, the Shanghai Composite index lost 0.3% to 4,068.28 and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 declined 0.1% to 8,942.80.
U.S. President Donald Trump attacked critics after a second round of talks with Iran was thrown into doubt by the U.S. Navy’s seizure of an Iranian-flagged cargo ship. Trump said Vice President JD Vance would be going to Islamabad, but the Iranian side made no commitment to more talks. Oil prices climbed Monday following the latest rise of tensions between the United States and Iran, but the moves were more modest than they were earlier in the war. On Monday, the S&P 500 slipped 0.2% from its all-time high and the Dow industrials edged less than 0.1% lower, while the Nasdaq composite fell 0.3%.
Worries over disruptions of supplies of oil from the Persian Gulf if Iran continues to block tankers from exiting the Strait of Hormuz are clouding investor sentiment. The next big deadline was looming on Tuesday night at 8 p.m. Eastern time, early Wednesday Tehran time, when a ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran was scheduled to expire. Mizuho Bank said in a commentary that “The current dynamic is one of a precarious balance of truce,” and that “as the ceasefire draws to its 2-week deadline, the all-consuming question is whether both sides can seize on the talks to land on a US-Iran deal that ends the war.” For now, oil prices remained well below the $119 per barrel level for Brent crude when fears were at their highest, and the S&P 500 was still above where it was before the war.
The League That Keeps Failing Upward
In the Gulf region, questions and speculation have grown over the participation of Gulf Cooperation Council states and their continued membership in the Arab League after the Arab League came under fire following the Israeli-American-Iranian conflict and Iranian attacks on the Gulf states and Jordan. Gulf observers, social media users and people close to decision-making circles believe the Arab League has not taken decisive stances or issued direct statements condemning the Iranian attacks on the Gulf states. They argue that the organization follows Egypt’s policy rather than the Arab consensus, given that its headquarters are in Egypt and most of its secretaries-general are former Egyptian officials.
Since the start of the Iranian attacks on the Gulf states and Jordan, the Arab League has issued several statements condemning the attacks. The first, issued on February 28, condemned the attacks and affirmed its full solidarity with the Arab states in confronting them and its support for any measures they take to defend themselves and protect their people. The Arab League Ministerial Council held an emergency meeting via video conference on March 8, 2026, and explicitly condemned the targeting of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Arab states that had been subjected to Iranian attacks, according to the statement issued after the meeting. Despite those statements, the storm was sparked by a March 8, 2026 media statement by Ahmed Aboul Gheit, secretary-general of the Arab League, who said the Iranian escalation against civilian targets in the Gulf was a “huge mistake.” Aboul Gheit also said that “no member of the Arab League has asked us to sever relations with Iran.”
The media statement drew strong reactions from officials, media figures and people close to Gulf authorities who felt the Arab League was not playing a meaningful role in containing the crisis. Sheik Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, the Kuwaiti foreign minister, said in his address to the Arab League meeting on March 29, 2026, that “successive experiences have revealed the limited effectiveness of the joint Arab action system within the framework of the Arab League, which necessitates a frank and responsible review. Despite its symbolic status, the Arab League has proven a clear inability to keep pace with rapidly evolving challenges and to play an effective role in safeguarding Arab security.”
Who Controls the Budget, Who Controls the Script
Lieutenant General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, deputy chief of police and public security in Dubai, posted on March 24, 2026, “The Gulf States' announcement of their withdrawal from the Arab League is not a true Arab League.” Jamal Sanad Al-Suwaidi, vice chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research, tweeted on March 31, 2026, “The Gulf States are considering withdrawing from the Arab League.” Dr. Khaled Al-Subaie, head of the Khaled Center for Media Studies and Consultations in Saudi Arabia, called on his official X account on April 4, 2026, for “the Gulf states to refuse to attend the meetings of the League of Arab States, not to recognize it and its decisions, and to close its offices in these countries,” and also called for “not paying any amounts into the budget of the League of Arab States.”
Qasim Sultan, a Saudi political analyst, told The Media Line that “The role of the Arab League has been weakening over time, and I believe this is due to the weakness of successive secretaries-general. Most of them are former Egyptian officials, over 70 years old. Therefore, this position, despite its importance, has become a place for some former Egyptian officials to retire, profit, and gain.” He said, “I believe it is necessary to move the headquarters of the Arab League from Egypt to Riyadh, and the established practice of the Secretary-General being Egyptian should not be changed, as it is not exclusive to any one country,” and added, “Its charter should also be amended to make its decisions more binding on Arab states, to expedite its decision-making process, and to work more effectively on joint coordination, as is the case in the European Union, rather than functioning as a forum that accomplishes virtually nothing.”
Abdullah Al-Khamis, a Kuwaiti political journalist, said, “The Gulf states pay the majority of the Arab League's budget, as previously announced at Arab League meetings.” He criticized the League for not playing a role during the Iranian attacks on the Gulf states and its “weak” reactions, saying, “It has also failed to engage in any international coordination, contenting itself with a few feeble statements.” He added, “I believe that an Arab coordination council should be formed, a better alternative to this League. This council should consist of the Gulf states, Jordan, Morocco, and Syria. These countries largely agree on their decisions and are also influential in international affairs.” Al-Khamis further said, “This Arab League was stillborn. It has never taken any decisive action throughout its history, nor has it been influential in international decisions. It has not taken any real action, whether economic, political, or in negotiations with any of the other major blocs.”
Former Iraqi Army General Amin Abdul Aziz told The Media Line, “What needs to be activated first in the Arab League is military unity.” He said there had been a lack of military exercises and coordination, adding, “Therefore, in the absence of any unified Arab military force, we shouldn't expect any effective decisions from the Arab League.” He continued, “Many events have taken place in the Arab world, and we haven't seen any unified positions, only a few weak statements that are ineffective. Therefore, the Arab League needs a complete overhaul, or it should be dissolved outright.” He also said the selection process itself may be the core issue, noting that “the mechanism for selecting the Secretary-General of the League, which has traditionally been to choose him permanently from Egypt and to be a former Egyptian official -a requirement not stipulated in any law or charter of the Arab League- is the crux of the matter.” Aziz added that “when a former Egyptian official, whether a foreign minister, prime minister, or someone else, serves in a position, he still carries Egyptian thinking and policies, and therefore doesn't represent all Arabs.”
Sarah Azab, an Egyptian political analyst and journalist, rejected claims that Egypt is responsible for the Arab League’s weakness, calling them politically motivated. She said such accusations are “simply attempts to undermine Egypt, and these claims are untrue.” She said Egypt’s leadership positions have typically gone to figures with international standing and that Cairo has broad regional backing, adding, “Egypt, being the largest Arab country and the most experienced in international politics, enjoys Arab consensus to assume this responsibility,” and that she would not object to an alternative candidate if they found someone better to head this organization from outside Egypt, but perhaps they haven't found anyone. Azab said the League’s challenges are structural rather than leadership-driven, saying divisions among member states are the main obstacle. “The problem within the Arab League lies in the conflicting interests of its members, not in the League itself,” she said, citing differing responses to Iranian actions in the Gulf. She also questioned why criticism appears to focus primarily on Egypt while overlooking others, asking, “Why don't we see these media attacks on the Sultanate of Oman … or even a semi-official attack on Algeria, Mauritania, or other countries that did not take a position?” Azab said, “Why only in Egypt, and to show as if the weakness of the Arab League is because of Egypt?” and concluded that “the Arab League is weak only because of the conflict of interests of the members.”