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322. And the Marginalisation goes on: Iraq and the Politics of Domination
- Author:
- Dylan O’Driscoll
- Publication Date:
- 09-2016
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Middle East Research Institute (MERI)
- Abstract:
- When the Prime Minister of Iraq, Haider al-Abadi, came into power in 2014 he promised to end the politics of dominance that was largely responsible for the rise of Islamic State (IS). Yet, with the military defeat of IS in Iraq imminent, Sunnis are still being marginalised and until this ends, the foundations of IS will remain within the society.
- Topic:
- Political Theory, Political Power Sharing, and Geopolitics
- Political Geography:
- Iraq and Middle East
323. Between Geopolitics and Transformation: Challenges and Perspectives for the Eastern Partnership
- Author:
- Hans Martin Sieg
- Publication Date:
- 11-2016
- Content Type:
- Commentary and Analysis
- Institution:
- German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP)
- Abstract:
- The EU’s Eastern Partnership (EaP) faces a double challenge. The transformation of post-Soviet countries it was designed to support has largely failed to emerge. In its place, a conflict with Russia has arisen for which the EaP was unprepared. This spells a dilemma. Rather than support EaP governments on the basis of their reform records, the EU is tempted to back them for the geopoli- tical choices they have made (namely, for their professed pro-European positions). In the long run, however, the EaP cannot succeed without delivering on its “trans- formational agenda.” Even in countries that have already signed Association Ag- reements with the EU, the ultimate success of the EaP is in question. This analysis describes the EaP’s “transformational challenge.” It argues that geopolitical com- petition with Russia was neither avoidable nor will it be easy to overcome. The key obstacle to change, however, is not geopolitical competition but the veto power of vested interests within EaP countries themselves. Since this veto power marks a crucial difference from conditions that prevailed in EU enlargements in Central Europe, the EaP’s response must apply a different transformational logic. The EU must go beyond merely supporting reforms in the EaP and effectively take co- responsibility for them. This involves upgrading the principle of conditionality and getting involved more directly in implementation. The paper concludes by stressing the importance of human resources in state institutions and proposes concrete measures for appointing and retaining qualified personnel and, particularly, inde- pendent leaders for key law enforcement and regulatory bodies.
- Topic:
- Geopolitics
- Political Geography:
- Eastern Europe
324. Schrödinger’s Kurds: Transnational Kurdish Geopolitics In The Age Of Shifting Borders
- Author:
- H. Akin Unver
- Publication Date:
- 05-2016
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Journal of International Affairs
- Institution:
- School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University
- Abstract:
- As the Middle East goes through one of its most historic, yet painful episodes, the fate of the region’s Kurds have drawn substantial interest. Transnational Kurdish awakening—both political and armed—has attracted unprecedented global interest as individual Kurdish minorities across four countries, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria, have begun to shake their respective political status quo in various ways. It is in Syria that the Kurds have made perhaps their largest impact, largely owing to the intensification of the civil war and the breakdown of state authority along Kurdish-dominated northern borderlands. However, in Turkey, Iraq, and Iran too, Kurds are searching for a new status quo, using multiple and sometimes mutually defeating methods. This article looks at the future of the Kurds in the Middle East through a geopolitical approach. It begins with an exposition of the Kurds’ geographical history and politics, emphasizing the natural anchor provided by the Taurus and Zagros mountains. That anchor, history tells us, has both rendered the Kurds extremely resilient to systemic changes to larger states in their environment, and also provided hindrance to the materialization of a unified Kurdish political will. Then, the article assesses the theoretical relationship between weak states and strong non-states, and examines why the weakening of state authority in Syria has created a spillover effect on all Kurds in its neighborhood. In addition to discussing classical geopolitics, the article also reflects upon demography, tribalism, Islam, and socialism as additional variables that add and expand the debate of Kurdish geopolitics. The article also takes a big-data approach to Kurdish geopolitics by introducing a new geopolitical research methodology, using large-volume and rapid-processed entity extraction and recognition algorithms to convert data into heat maps that reveal the general pattern of Kurdish geopolitics in transition across four host countries.
- Topic:
- Regional Cooperation, Geopolitics, Borders, and Translation
- Political Geography:
- Iraq, Iran, Turkey, Middle East, Syria, and Kurdistan
325. A View of Turkey in Times of General Election: Historical Heritage, Geopolitics, and Relevancy to China
- Author:
- Zan Tao
- Publication Date:
- 12-2016
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Pangoal Institution
- Abstract:
- In recent years, Turkey has attracted increasing attention from researchers focused on both the Middle East and the development of China. As these researchers are interested in the special and sensitive issues between Turkey and China, they need to acquire knowledge about a particular aspect of Turkey. Although a large economic power in the Middle East located between Europe and Asia, the Muslim country of Turkey is a member of NATO. It has witnessed a continuous high economic growth over the past decade, and it is one of the non-Western countries that became middle developed nations at an early time. Recently, Turkey has grown into the 16th largest economy in the world. In recent years, given the complicated drastic changes and turmoil in the Middle East, Turkey has played an important role in regional affairs. On June 7, 2015, Turkey embraced parliament election, which inevitably exerts an important influence on the current and future domestic politics and diplomacy of Turkey. Turkey is also the host country of the G20 Summit that will be held in November 2016. In this context, we observe this country from the perspective of its historical heritages and geopolitical patterns. The multiple roles, changes, and positions of Turkey are also examined in this work. In addition, the special relation of Turkey with China is revealed. This study aims to help the Chinese people understand Turkey and provide knowledge that could assist China in its formulation of policies and strategies affecting Turkey.
- Topic:
- NATO, Geopolitics, Islamic State, Islamism, AKP, and Erdogan
- Political Geography:
- Turkey and Mediterranean
326. The Gulf of GuineA: The Future African Persian Gulf?
- Author:
- Yoslán Silverio González
- Publication Date:
- 06-2016
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Brazilian Journal of African Studies
- Institution:
- Brazilian Journal of African Studies
- Abstract:
- Different African regions have not stopped being at the epicenter of games and influences from capitalist powers, mainly from former European metropolises, such as France, and the United States, due to the fact that each one of them has significant importance in the international relations’ context, because of either their geographic position or their natural resources2 . In the last decades, guaranteeing energy supply has become a matter of natural security for all countries, especially for those with high levels of consumption and industrial development. Projections for the next years show that there will not be viable alternatives to replace hydrocarbons as the main energy source. Therefore, oil will continue to be the center of the whole industrial productive base. As consumption increases and supply decreases, competition for its control will grow. Here is where the Sub-Saharan African oil producing regions start to play a strategic role. The African continent has always been subject to developed capitalist countries’ greed, whose oil companies, supported by their governments, continue to seek licenses to explore crude oil and gas reserves, in what has been called the new scramble for Africa. Countries such as the United Kingdom and Norway have found in Africa an alternative to the deterioration of their supply zones in the North Sea. The US has managed to take France’s place in controlling this sector, and Chinese companies have increased their presence in the oil and gas business, which is “worrying” US and European businesspersons, who perceive China’s advances as a menace to their economic hegemony. For these reasons, they tend to present China as a new “imperialism”, much more contaminating and exploitative, an ill-intended focus that looks to hide what European and US capitalism have done for decades in the continent.
- Topic:
- Natural Resources, Geopolitics, and Trade
- Political Geography:
- Africa, Guinea, and Persian Gulf
327. Fostering Sustainably Resilient Communities: What Works and What is Required?
- Author:
- Maxime Honigmann
- Publication Date:
- 10-2016
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Institute for the Study of International Development, McGill University
- Abstract:
- Global-local power dynamics are often framed with the phrase: “all geopolitics is local.” This adage references the convergence of global forces at the local level, presenting small communities with complex ranges of globalization-produced challenges. As more and more of these forces intersect and interact, local politics has gradually become more complex, with previously reliable patterns of demographics, environment, and economics fundamentally disrupted. From the elimination of traditional sources of livelihood to the introduction of revolutionary information technologies, local leaders everywhere have had to “sink or swim” – by either depending passively on the status quo, or taking an active, adaptive approach to confronting present and future challenges. The latter approach, while certainly requiring more investment from all actors involved, holds the key to a community’s empowerment, legitimacy, and ultimately, survival. It must be noted that communities do not always act benevolently, and their boundaries are not always clear – as Robert argues, “community is fundamentally contested ground” and exclusionary practices can be readily observed (Chaskin 2008, 73). Nevertheless, as a localized form of social organization, community governance systems are best-placed to uphold and adapt the principles of resilience to sustainably maintain the wellbeing of their populations. Resilience measures will remain at a significant disadvantage if they do not take into account input from the local communities they are addressed to. Community members know their area’s needs, offer unique streams of innovation, possess legitimacy in the discursive process, and can build and leverage beneficial social support systems intrinsic to their community. The end benefits are clear: countless studies have found flexible, nuanced, and locally-adapted resilience strategies to be most effective (cite sources here).
- Topic:
- Development, Power Politics, Geopolitics, and Resilience
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
328. Iran’s Failed Foreign Policy: Dealing from a Position of Weakness
- Author:
- Thomas Juneau
- Publication Date:
- 05-2015
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Middle East Institute (MEI)
- Abstract:
- In this MEI Policy Paper, Thomas Juneau examines Iran’s role in Yemen, Syria, Iraq, and the Arab-Israeli conflict to explain why Iran is not a “rising regional hegemon” but rather a “mid-sized regional power frustrated at not reaching its ambitions.”
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Power Politics, Nuclear Power, and Geopolitics
- Political Geography:
- Iraq, Iran, Middle East, Israel, Yemen, Palestine, and Syria
329. Defying Gravity: Working Toward a Regional Strategy for a Stable Middle East
- Author:
- Ross Harrison
- Publication Date:
- 05-2015
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Middle East Institute (MEI)
- Abstract:
- In this MEI Policy Paper, Ross Harrison asserts that a new regional order is emerging out of the conflicts of the Middle East. The relationships among the pillars of this order--Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Iran--are crucial, as they will largely determine "whether the future of the Middle East will be a continuation of the current chaos and destruction or a more positive transition toward stability and prosperity." Harrison argues that global powers must concentrate on creating conditions conducive to cooperation among the pillars.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Geopolitics, and Political stability
- Political Geography:
- Iran, Turkey, Middle East, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt
330. Geopolitics at the World's Pivot: Exploring Central Asia's Security Challenges
- Author:
- Jacqueline Lopour
- Publication Date:
- 11-2015
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Centre for International Governance Innovation
- Abstract:
- This paper introduces Central Asia’s geopolitical significance and explores several inter-related security challenges. For each security issue, this paper provides a brief overview of the issue, explains why or how it developed and looks at the issue’s significance within the broader security environment. The paper then turns to Canada’s role in Central Asia and addresses opportunities to expand engagement in the security realm.
- Topic:
- Security, International Security, Bilateral Relations, Governance, and Geopolitics
- Political Geography:
- Central Asia and Canada