Valentina Pegolo | 04 May 2021
Following the Arab Spring, Italy has tried to improve its geopolitical position in the Middle East. Its approach, however, has suffered from the lack of a grand strategy and overreliance on strategic partners
Jonathan Fenton-Harvey | 27 April 2021
Renewed attempts to reach a breakthrough over Ethiopia’s River Nile dam faltered on April 4, as Egyptian president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi reiterated his warnings of a conflict. Tensions are therefore extremely high over the ongoing construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam
Mohammed Sinan Siyech | 22 April 2021 | AR | TR
The Islamic State has gradually ramped up its attacks in Syria and Iraq since the mid-2020. This brief examines the group’s recent activities in both nations to interrogate if the group is undergoing a phase of resurgence in the region. Accordingly, it maps out the different factors that are aiding the group and provides some policy implications for governments in the region
Mehmet Emin Cengiz | 19 April 2021
The intra-Kurdish unity talks between the PYD and the KNC seem to be at an impasse. The unity negotiations, which are undoubtedly the product of times of crisis in Kurdish politics in Syria, started in April 2020, and two rounds of negotiations have already passed. Nevertheless, face-to-face negotiations between the sides stalled months ago, and the third round of talks could not be initiated despite various attempts and US mediation. Moreover, many obstacles lie ahead of the success of the unity talks.
Al Sharq Strategic Research | 06 April 2021
Libya has emerged in recent years as the primary flashpoint in regional geopolitics. All the feuds, divides, and struggles that have defined the MENA regional politics since the onset of the Arab uprisings have played out in Libya
Sinan Hatahet | 12 March 2021 | AR | TR
Following the dramatic and quick deposing of Ben Ali in Tunis and Mubarak in Egypt, the younger and allegedly more popular Bashar al-Assad publically dismissed the possibility of himself witnessing a similar fate. Confident of his ability to navigate through murky waters and maintain a working relationship with the international community despite their previous attempts at alienation
Harun Karcic | 07 March 2021 | TR
There has been a flurry of Israeli activity in the Balkan region over the past couple of years. The most recent example was the much publicized establishment of formal diplomatic ties between Israel and Kosovo, a Muslim-majority country
Leonid M. Issaev | 17 February 2021 | AR | TR
The onset of the Arab uprisings in 2011 marked the beginning of not only a new order in the Middle East, but also the start of Russia’s “return” to the Middle East. Russia would increasingly position itself as one of the key actors which the new regional order would depend on. Researchers
Kristian Coates Ulrichsen | 15 February 2021 | AR | TR
How Have the Arab Uprisings Fragmented the Gulf ? With the notable exception of the upheaval that shook Bahrain in February and March 2011, the Arab uprisings have had a longer ‘tail’ [...]
Anna L. Jacobs | 08 February 2021
What does Blinken’s confirmation hearing say about future US policy in the Middle East ? On January 19, the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a hearing in which Biden’s Secretary of State nominee [...]
