Global And Regional Strategies In The Middle East

Global and Regional Strategies in the Middle East explores hegemony in the Middle East through understanding different dimensions of power politics and the consequences of the hegemonic ambitions of both global and regional powers. The book adds new aspects to the extensive literature on grand strategies in the Middle East by exploring and evaluating competing strategies from an "insider" perspective. First, it highlights the main determinants of Global powers' grand strategies, assesses the ones applied in the Middle East, and forecasts future strategies after the Ukraine war in alignment with other rival states' capabilities and goals. It then underlines regional dynamics and the hegemonic quest of regional powers and their power politics' determinants since the "War on terror," the Arab Spring, and, more recently, the Russian intervention in Ukraine and Israel-Gaza conflict. The book broadens readers' perspectives by clarifying the region's dynamics that shaped the global and regional power rivalries, where security concerns, economic interests, oil supplies, and hegemonic ambitions make it complicated for the US to keep influence and the total control it had during the late 20th century. This book will be of great interest to scholars and students of the MENA region, International Relations and Strategic Studies.

Covering a century of Middle Eastern international relations, this book develops an original approach to understanding regional conflict and cooperation.

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is an economically diverse region. Despite undertaking economic reforms in many countries, and having considerable success in avoiding crises and achieving macroeconomic stability, the region’s economic performance in the past 30 years has been below potential. This paper takes stock of the region’s relatively weak performance, explores the reasons for this out come, and proposes an agenda for urgent reforms.

This book emphasizes the vital links between international politics and strategy and provides a comprehensive analysis of strategic interests of the major international actors in the Middle East. It contends that the policies of the superpowers toward the Middle East are fragmented and unproductive.

This book examines the deep-seated problems in the Middle East and their impact on the United States and its allies. Exploring the disruptive effects of the double-edged sword of nationalism and modernization, the contributors discuss the full range of Western security interests in the region. Case studies of key countries emphasize the prospect for peaceful political, economic, and cultural change. The authors analyze the ramifications of the Arab-Israeli conflict and the threats posed by Soviet penetration. Arguing that confusion and contradiction mark U.S. policy in the Middle East, the book concludes that U.S. strategists should focus not on curing the region's internal problems but on coping with them without sacrificing long-term goals for quick fixes.

Examining globalization in the Middle East, this book provides a much needed assessment of the impact of globalization in the ‘greater’ Middle East, including North Africa, in the context of the powerful geopolitical forces at work in shaping the region today. Written by a well-known authority in this area, this book demonstrates that, unlike in other regions, such as East Asia, geopolitics has been a critical factor in driving globalization in the Middle East. The author argues that whereas elsewhere globalisation has opened up the economy, society, culture and attitudes to the environment; in the Middle East it has had the opposite effect, with poor state formation, little interregional trade, foreign and interregional investment, and reassertion of traditional identities. This book explores the impact of globalization on the polities, economies and social environment of the greater Middle East, in the context of the region’s position as the central site of global geopolitical competition at the start of the twenty-first century.

The research papers contained within this book, which were presented at the ECSSR’s 20th Annual Conference, serve to shed light on the crucial events that have transpired throughout the Middle East and to provide a foundation for critical discussion and conscious interaction. Furthermore, these papers present initiatives that aim to contain the region’s crises and to formulate corresponding solutions. The book aims to follow the profound transformations and violent tremors that threaten to reorder the region’s political map. The paradoxical nature of the conflicts in the region, with complexities that are deemed to be strategically focused within the international realm, is considered as a source of constant political tension on the regional level. Within this context, the chapters of the book examine the standing of the international anti-terrorism coalition and the challenges it faces, alongside the concept of the nation-state in the Arab World and the confrontation with non-state actors. The book also diagnoses the sectarian and religious polarization that rips the region apart and the dimensions of international competition over the region. Moreover, the chapters of the book explore the horizons of possible reliance on China’s role in stabilizing regional and international balances. The functions of Arab collective action and their developments are also examined, as well as joint-Arab relations and their future outlook. Through its depiction of the current political and strategic landscape within the region, The Middle East: Shifting Roles, Interests and Alliances attempts to convey the needs of the region by shedding light on the nature of its divisions and paradoxes—while also placing the context of current shifts within the tactical and strategic plans of regional and international players. As such, the subsequent potential repercussions that may impact security are analyzed, alongside the developmental requirements for the region and the world at large.