Diplomacy in the Middle East

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Peace, Security & Defence

29Sep2022

starts 09:00

ends 18:00

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The event will take place on zoom but will also be available to a wider audience via livestream.
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The structure of power and diplomacy in inner- and inter-state relations in the Middle East is once again undergoing profound transformations. In the 20th century, the power architecture inherited from colonial rule had condemned the region to instability, leaving behind questionable borders, dissatisfied ethnic minorities and ultimately fuelling state and non-state actors to challenge existing territorial sovereignty. More recently, the renegotiation of the role of civil society during the Arab Spring testified to the existence of seeds of change that had been silently growing long before the first protests in Tahrir Square. Though several political dialogues materialised in the early 2010s, they failed to bring about stability in the region. Today, much uncertainty surrounds the future of Middle Eastern diplomacy and politics.

This article series and Policy Insight debate will focus on the most prominent issues affecting the region, with the aim of learning from the past, understanding current challenges and thinking through the role of hard and soft diplomacy in the Middle East. Drawing together the expertise and experiences of diplomats and foreign policy experts from across the Middle East, Europe and the United States, contributors will address topics such as Iran’s influence within and outside the region, the fate of Syria and Afghanistan, peace processes in the Middle East and the stabilisation of Iraq.

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Schedule

Questions include:

Can diplomacy and peace talks save Afghanistan from Taliban’s terror? How can the USA support a unified approach to peace?
Water security and diplomacy in the Middle East, what obstacles to cooperation and peacebuilding?
After over a decade of conflict, Syria’s position on the world stage is starting to change. Does reintegrating Syria into International Organisations legitimize Assad’s regime? As the conflict continues, is there hope for greater stability in the coming years?
Is Iran going to maintain its privileged relationship with Russia despite the invasion of Ukraine? What future for EU-Iran relationship? What future for the Iran nuclear talks?
What role for Iraq’s energy diplomacy within and outside the Middle East?
How will China’s diplomatic efforts in the Middle East reshape the power balance between regional States? Could China’s diplomatic involvement in the Middle East challenge, if not the world order, the regional order?
From meditation, negotiation, and settlement of political disputes, what are the characteristics of Arab approaches to diplomacy? Has the Arab spring forever altered modes of conflict resolutions in the Middle East?