I guess the question i'm asking is why oil rich nations of the middle east haven't risen into a growing superpower like China has. Not to sound like a conspiracy nut, but why are the Islamic states so disparate in modern times, compared to the Islamic golden age?
I think I answered this question on r/history, but I'll give my answer again.
It's their reliance on other nations that's the problem. Originally they Al-Saud family (Saudi Arabia) were put in place by the Brits, so whilst Britain was a super power they were largelly under her maj's sphere of influence, now a lot of their military needs the US. They may own the oil but they need people to buy it. The UAE only got rich when people started buying their resources.
Also they kind of missed the moment to develop in to super powers. After imperialism came crashing to an end world war 2 saw the establishment of the modern "super power" they we largelly still colonised and to busy trying to get rid of Israel to really launch themseleves on the world stage.
Now it really comes down to a lack of stability. They cycle through various governmental ideologies, nationalist, militarist and Islamic. Whereas other states, such as Iran, have isolated themselves.
My friend from Iraq says the sack of Baghdad in 1258 by the Mongols completely, utterly, destroyed Arab high culture. It never managed to return to their former greatness after that.