The dialogue follows the first TRENDS-Strategics Dialogue, The War in the Middle East: Regional and International Implications and Future Trajectories, which was held last week.

The TRENDS Research & Advisory office in Amman, in cooperation with the Strategics Institute for Strategic Studies and Research in Jordan, will organize the Second TRENDS Strategic Dialogue on March 17, 2026, titled: The Middle East: Between Escalation and the Reshaping of Balances. The dialogue will take place at 4:00 PM Abu Dhabi time via virtual conferencing (online).

This dialogue is organized within the framework of the cooperation agreement signed between TRENDS and the Strategics Institute, and as part of joint efforts to enhance dialogue and exchange analytical perspectives on regional and international issues, contributing to a deeper strategic understanding of the rapid transformations taking place in the Middle East.

The dialogue continues with the first TRENDS Strategic Dialogue, held last week, titled The War in the Middle East: Regional and International Implications and Future Trajectories. The new discussion aims to explore the implications of the current escalation in the region and analyze the emerging features of the reshaping of regional balances amid accelerating military and geopolitical developments.

The dialogue will bring together a distinguished group of researchers, experts, and academics from several Arab countries. Discussions will address seven main themes, including:

· Gulf security in the face of Iranian attacks: political dimensions and options for international response.

· Transformations in the regional security domain: expansion, concepts, and operational dimensions of security, deterrence, and defense.

· The Middle East and projects of regional and international hegemony: ideological foundations and the practice of political and military action through sub-state actors.

· Prospects of the Iranian war: scenarios and expectations.

· Iran’s war and the future of regional strategic balances in the Middle East.

· Post-war considerations: preliminary conclusions.

· The defeat of the sectarian project in the Arab region.

Dr. Mohammed Abdullah Al-Ali, CEO of TRENDS Research & Advisory, affirmed that this dialogue aligns with the organization’s commitment to promoting rigorous academic discussion of the strategic issues facing the region and to providing a platform that brings together experts and researchers to exchange analyses and future-oriented insights.

He explained that organizing this dialogue through cooperation between the TRENDS office in Amman and the Strategics Institute reflects the importance of research partnerships in supporting knowledge exchange and enhancing a shared understanding of regional challenges. He added that the dialogue continues the series of TRENDS Strategic Dialogues, which examine geopolitical transformations in the region and anticipate their future trajectories.

Dr. Al-Ali further noted that the dialogue will address the dimensions of the current escalation in the Middle East and its political and security implications, as well as analyze possible scenarios for reshaping regional balances and the role of regional and international powers in shaping the contours of the next phase.

He emphasized that the participation of its office in Amman aligns with the TRENDS vision to strengthen its regional research presence and to build effective dialogue platforms that bring together experts, decision-makers, and researchers.