Paper long abstract:

The Gulf States have longstanding historical, sociocultural, political, and economic relations with the Horn states. They have long been involved in the Horn politics. The Gulf States' involvement in the Horn politics, which has hitherto been predicated on geopolitical and geostrategic interests, has largely contributed to the intensification of conflicts in the latter. Nonetheless, new patterns of political relations that have allegedly been driven by shared narratives and policy orientations have emerged between the Gulf States and their counterparts in the Horn region. This emerging political engagement appeared to have contributed to regional peace and development in the Horn. This paper analyzes the new form of political relations between the Gulf States - the UAE and the Saudi - and the Horn states - Ethiopia, Djibouti, and Somaliland - and its contribution to regional peace and development.