This book examines the regional order in the Gulf Region and the wider Middle East, focusing on regional rivalries and security alliances. The authors analyze the regional system in terms of its general structure as well as the major inter-state and non-state security alliances. The structure of the regional system in the wider Middle East and the shake-ups it has experienced explain the ongoing regional rivalry and polarization since 2011 in hotspots such as Syria, Yemen, and Libya. As such, the various chapters address regional transition and power dynamics between and among regional great powers and non-state militant actors across the Gulf Region and the wider Middle East in terms of the alliance building, persistence, and disintegration since 2011.
This book explores the complexity of the Syrian question and its effects on the foreign policies of Russia, Iran, and Turkey. The Syrian crisis has had a major effect on the regional order in the Middle East. Syria has become a territory where the rivalry between Russia and Western powers is being played out, and with the West’s gradual withdrawal, the conflict will without a doubt have lasting effects locally and on the international order. This collection focuses on the effects of the Syrian crisis on the new governance of the Middle East region by three political regimes: Russia, Iran, and Turkey. Many articles and a number of books have been written on this conflict, which has lasted over ten years, but no publication has examined simultaneously and comparatively how these three states are participating in the shared management of the Syrian conflict.
Barnett explores the relationships among Arab identity, the meaning of Arabism, and desired regional order in the Middle East from 1920 to the present, focusing on Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia.
This book examines some of the driving forces of change in the Middle East and aims to provide a regional outlook. The political and social events of the past years have significantly affected the regional structure across the Middle East, evident in socio-economic systems, security framework and the balance of power across the area. Each chapter focuses on one of the driving forces of change, including the Iran Nuclear Deal, the role of external powers, energy and its political and economic role in the region, the regional balance of power struggle amongst the key regional players and the socio-economic challenges across the region.
It might seem confounding to explore the pathways and prospects for regional cooperation in a Middle East currently mired in proxy conflict, civil war and terrorism. But the Middle East is not the first region in the world to pass through a period of intense conflict-consider Europe or East Asia just a few decades ago-and exit on a path toward regional cooperation. Indeed, it is exactly the immense toll that regional conflict is taking on states, societies, and economies of the region that makes developing a vision toward defusing regional conflict and building stability all the more urgent. Societies at war are those that urgently need an alternative vision of regional order and a roadmap for getting there.Despite-or perhaps because of-the conflicted realities of today's Middle East, this volume takes on the issue of regional cooperation head-on. In total, it attempts to provide a balanced approach-neither falling into the traps of na�ve optimism nor cynical pessimism. It does, however, approach the topic from the belief that the only way to move the Middle East from its current state of instability, destruction, and despair is through eventual cooperation between the major regional powers, as remote as the prospects for this appear today.
Covering a century of Middle Eastern international relations, this book develops an original approach to understanding regional conflict and cooperation.
Since the end of the Cold War and the 1990/91 Gulf war, the Middle East has been in the grip of dramatic changes. The region faces a host of problems urgently in need of solutions if a successful new world order is to be built on the ruins of the old. In this book, an international group of scholars addresses these issues and considers the options for the political and economic reconstruction of the Middle East. Themes covered include: democratization; the Arab state system in the new global environment; the end of Marxism in the Middle East; security structures; the Arab-Israeli conflict; the role of pan-Islamism and pan-Arabism; and the prospects for economic revival. Case-studies are drawn from the whole region, from North Africa to the Arabian Peninsula.
Acclaimed Israeli intelligence analyst Avi Melamed has spent more than thirty years interpreting Middle East affairs. His long-awaited Inside the Middle East challenges widely-accepted perceptions and provides a gripping and uniquely enlightening guide to make sense of the events unfolding in the region—to answer how the Arab world got to this point, what is currently happening, what the ramifications will be, how they will affect Israel, and what actions must immediately be undertaken, including how Western leaders need to respond. Melamed considers all the major power players in the Middle East, explains the underlying issues, and creates a three-dimensional picture, an illustration that connects the dots and provides a fascinating roadmap. He elucidates developments such as the Arab Spring, the downfall of the Muslim Brotherhood, the rise of ISIS, the epic Sunni-Shiite animosity, the essence of the war in Syria, the role of the Caliphate and Jihad, and the looming nuclear arms race. He also provides a rare opportunity to journey into the psyche of Arab society. Look through the lens of its leaders and its most ruthless terrorists. See what makes them tick and what they want. Discover how they can be overtaken. This unparalleled volume is a milestone in our understanding of the Middle East. It is the untold story of the struggles that will shape the region, and the world, for decades to come, and a groundbreaking guide that will shake you to the core, force you to reevalute your outlook, and give you tips to navigate the future. From author Avi Melamed: The conflicts in the Middle East grow more confusing and dangerous every day. In my encounters with thousands of people from across the world - from global leaders to high school students - I know there is deep and intense thirst for knowledge because today understanding the Middle East is not optional – it’s mandatory. My new book, Inside the Middle East: Making Sense of the Most Dangerous and Complicated Region on Earth is based on my decades of advisory, counterterrorism, education, and intelligence – positions - as well as my intimate connections throughout the Arab world. The book also provides the building blocks and database to understand the contemporary Middle East, offers a unique insight into the Arab world, and is “a GPS to help you navigate the dramatically changing Middle East.” In the book, I also offer an out of the box idea that could lead to a positive breakthrough in the Israeli- Palestinian conflict.
This electronic version has been made available under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-ND) open access license. This text aims to fill a gap in the field of Middle Eastern political studies by combining international relations theory with concrete case studies. It begins with an overview of the rules and features of the Middle East regional system—the arena in which the local states, including Egypt, Turkey, Iran, Israel and the Arab states of Syria, Jordan and Iraq, operate. The book goes on to analyse foreign-policy-making in key states, illustrating how systemic determinants constrain this policy-making, and how these constraints are dealt with in distinctive ways depending on the particular domestic features of the individual states. Finally, it goes on to look at the outcomes of state policies by examining several major conflicts including the Arab-Israeli conflict and the Gulf War, and the system of regional alignment. The study assesses the impact of international penetration in the region, including the historic reasons behind the formation of the regional state system. It also analyses the continued role of external great powers, such as the United States and the former Soviet Union, and explains the process by which the region has become incorporated into the global capitalist market.
