|
Since the outbreak of the Arab uprisings in 2011, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has gone through a multiplicity of interrelated conflicts over power and politics. Pre-existing domestic, regional and global conflict potentials have been unleashed, and new dynamics have emerged. According to many observers, the region today faces a complex crisis that in its totality surpasses anything the region has experienced since the European decolonization in the middle of the 20th century. These conflicts are primarily challenges faced by governments and societies inside the region, but are deeply interconnected with broader patterns in global and international politics and thus also interrelate with foreign and domestic policies of European and American governments.
This conference organized by DIIS ∙ Danish Institute for International Studies in collaboration with the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs aims to provide an analysis of six key trends in the conflicts over power and politics in the MENA region today. These trends include the increasing rivalry and competition between regional powers in the MENA region and they include the protracted domestic conflicts between autocratic governments and militarized societies. They encompass the decreasing performance of the region’s rentier-based political economies and the changing forms of American hegemony in the MENA region and the emboldening of its challengers. Finally, they cover the changing forms of the European Union’s foreign policy in the region following the nationalist turn in Europe and the increase in migration and terrorism.
The conference, which will be opened by the Danish Minister for Foreign Affairs, offers in-depth presentations by six highly esteemed international scholars as well as comments from four esteemed Danish scholars and experts. It also provides and opportunity for the audience to raise questions and debate with the speakers.
The event is organized by DIIS in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark
|
