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Excerpts: Should Gulf Arabs invest in UK property? Iranian regime’s
Excerpts: Should Gulf Arabs invest in UK property? Iranian regime’s Achilles
Heel February 02, 2017
+++SOURCE:Al Arabiya 2 Feb.’17:”Is this a good time for Gulf Arabs to
invest in UK property? by N.P. Krushna Kumar
SUBJECT: Should Gulf Arabs invest in UK property?
QUOTE:”Prime areas of like Mayfair, Chelsea, South Kensington,
Knightsbridge, Belgravia, Holland Park, and Notting Hill are the favorite
spots when investing in London property. (Shutterstock)
When it comes to high net worth individuals from the Gulf parking their
funds abroad, the UK has been the perennial favorite, owing to historical
links, business relations and the sheer familiarity out of frequent travel
for shopping, recreation and education.
Over the last decade, the sovereign wealth funds from Gulf countries have
bought some iconic and historic properties and whole blocks in prime areas
of London like Mayfair, Chelsea, South Kensington, Knightsbridge, Belgravia,
Holland Park, and Notting Hill.
Many Gulf investors like the Jeddah-based investment bank, Sidra Capital,
are also involved in redeveloping and adding value to projects after
acquiring historic neighborhoods, as in Hamilton Drive, a 1.2 hectare
development in St John’s Wood consisting of 10 luxury town houses and a
villa, near to the famous Abbey Road Studios.
Individuals have also in recent years been increasingly buying homes in
London as a holiday homes for summer and for extended stays. The added bonus
of a cheaper pound in the wake of the strong dollar, makes UK investments
for those in the Gulf more enticing.
Al Arabiya English spoke to two experts on their views.
“The simple rule of supply and demand means that, while the rate of growth
has slowed in some parts of London, nowhere are they likely to fall back
significantly, even in the event of a Brexit,” says Robin Teh, UAE Country
Manager/Director Valuations & Advisory UAE, Chestertons MENA, delving into
the factors driving Arabs from the GCC region to invest in UK property.
“The extra 3 per cent stamp duty and the uncertainty around the Brexit
strategy mean buy-to-let investors in particular are reviewing their
strategies. However, we are finding that the slack is being taken up by
committed buyers looking for the right home in the right location – whether
that’s for work, family or school reasons. Overseas buyers tempted by the
relatively cheap pound have also returned to buy up prime London homes.”
Andrew Prince, who is the British Business Group Dubai and Northern Emirates
Director of Focus Groups, says: “There have been very close historical,
cultural and economic relationships between the Gulf countries and the UK
over the last four decades, and these continue to strengthen with time.
These relationships have developed over generations and have resulted in,
among many other things, a desire to invest in the UK, and specifically
London which many Arabs would consider their home-away-from-home, and to
where there are now a staggering number of daily flights arriving from the
GCC.”
“The UK has maintained its position as Dubai’s third largest European
trading partner, across sectors such as education, healthcare, technical and
management consulting and others. This pace of trade between Dubai and the
UK has only increased during the past few years with both direct and
indirect trade,” says Prince.
Brexit factor:
Will Brexit discourage Arab investors in the future? “On the contrary, there
is a significant advantage for those whose currency is pegged to the US
Dollar as they can benefit from the current weakness in Sterling,” says
Prince.
“Moreover, the UK is recognized globally for its political and economic
stability and therefore remains attractive to overseas investors. Investors,
particularly those with long traditions of trading, will see the
opportunities and are shrewd enough to recognize that any current
Brexit-related volatility is short-term. Investing should be seen for its
long-term benefits and not necessarily the short-term fluctuations and
uncertainty.”
Robin Teh says that “London has long been a favored destination for
investors from the Middle East region, it is a mature, well-regulated market
with a solid track record for capital appreciation and many Middle East
investors are familiar with London, visiting on a regular basis.”
Other Gateway Cities:When it comes to the favorite realty hotspots in the UK
where the Arab buyers mostly focus their interest, Teh says: “In addition to
London, Chestertons MENA is also expanding its UK property investment reach
with the launch of a number of new prime developments in the key gateway
cities of Manchester and Birmingham, due to strong economic growth, large
student populations and major government transport infrastructure
investment, both of which offer good returns for investors looking out with
London.”
Prince also concurs with this view, saying: “The UK has a history of being
open and welcoming to investors and migrants. While cities such as
Manchester and Edinburgh are gaining popularity, London will always have a
special place in the hearts and minds of Arabs, and will probably be the
place of choice when it comes to investing in real estate, especially if it
is to purchase a second home.”
+++SOURCE: Al Arabiya 2 Feb.’17:Opinion:”Analysis:Irania regime’s Achilles
Heel”,By Hassan Dai
SUBJECT: Iranian regime’s Achilles Heel
QUOTE:”These acts by the Revolutionary Guards and its regional proxes are
part of a larger campaign to project the Iranian military power and help
Iran energize its supporters across the region while intimidating its
rivals.”
FULL TEXT:In the last week of January, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards
(IRGC) test-fired a new ballistic missile in violation of a United Nations
ban imposed on the Iranian missile program.
In the same week, Harakat al Nujaba, an Iranian proxy-militia in Iraq staged
a public event to test-fire its new long-range missile provided by Iran.
Then, Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen attacked a Saudi warship in the Red
sea killing several servicemen.
These acts by the Revolutionary Guards and its regional proxies are part of
a larger campaign to project the Iranian military power and help Iran to
energize its supporters across the region while intimidating its rivals.
As Iran was actively trying to demonstrate its power abroad, the
Revolutionary Guards’ Mobilization Units or the “Bassij organization” held a
large-scale drill in several cities across Iran to prepare its forces for
urban warfare and increase its readiness to neutralize popular unrests.
These kind of drills are more frequently organized by the Guards in Iran as
social and political tensions continue to rise in the country.
Recently, the Deputy Interior Minister declared that public protests by
workers, teachers or other factions of society had increased by 69 percent
in the past three years. A cursory review of declarations made by the
Iranian political and security leadership reveal that the regime considers
domestic popular uprisings as the most fundamental threat to its survival.
In September 2007, the newly appointed commander of the Revolutionary
Guards, Mohammad Ali Jafari who continues to hold this position, declared
that “the Guards’ primary mission is to fight against domestic threats.” He
explained that the Iranian Supreme Leader had defined the new strategy and
ordered a re-organization of the Guards and its Bassiji units to carry out
this mission.
Combating domestic threats: This new strategy and emphasis on combating
domestic threats helped the regime in overcoming the 2009 popular uprising
that followed the rigged Presidential election that lasted almost a year and
according to the regime’s own admission, brought the Islamic Republic to the
edge of collapse.
In fact, the success of the Revolutionary Guards’ new strategy and the
regime’s capacity to crush the Iranian uprising appears more revealing when
compared to the fragility of Arab regimes that appeared unprepared to cope
with the popular movements which erupted in 2011 during the Arab spring.
This comparison was well explained by General Hossein Hamedani, the
commander of Bassij forces in Tehran during the 2009 uprising who later in
2011, was sent to Syria and played a pivotal role in the formation of the
Syrian National Defense Forces (NDF).
Hamedani who was the highest ranking Guards commander in Syria and was
killed in October 2015, gave an interview to an Iranian website that was
published on April 20, 2015 and explained that it was Assad’s weakness in
dealing with peaceful protests that led to a national armed uprising.
Hamedani declared: “In the beginning, the Syrian government’s reaction to
the peaceful demonstrators was harsh and this created a new series of
problems. Unlike Iran that has the Bassiji and other police forces to deal
with popular unrests, Assad did not possess such an appropriate force and
was forced to use the army.
The Guard’s Strategy: In his interview, Hamedani detailed the evolution of
the Guards’ strategy and its reorganization to deal with domestic threats
confirming that in Tehran alone, the Guards had deployed 45,000 Bassiji
members in plain clothes or in uniform to combat the popular uprising.
While foreign observers are predominantly focused on examining the
activities and influence of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards’ Quds force and its
vast network of proxy militias across the Middle East, less attention has
been paid to the Guards’ sophisticated and modernized repressive apparatus
in Iran that has considerably evolved during the past four decades.
By underestimating the Guards’ activities inside Iran, described as its
primary mission, the observers could neglect the regime’s Achilles Heel and
its vulnerability in regard to domestic social and political challenges that
continue to rise and will continue to be the key threat to the regime’s
survival.
Disclaimer: Views expressed by writers in this section are their own and do
not reflect Al Arabiya English’s point-of-view.
_____________________________
Hassan Dai is an investigative journalist and political analyst specialized
in Iranian regime activities in the Middle East and pro-Iran activities in
the West. He is the editor of Iranian American Forum.
============
Sue Lerner – Associate, IMRA
Source: http://www.imra.org.il/story.php3?id=72131
