MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA

  • What a Corbyn government could mean for the Middle East (Commentary)

    Tim Springett - 10 December 2019

    Dramatic shifts are on the horizon for British policy on Israel-Palestine and Saudi Arabia, should Corbyn win power this week.

    After the Iran protests: How Europe can keep diplomacy alive (Commentary)

    Ellie Geranmayeh - 10 December 2019

    Washington will use the recent unrest to argue against Europe engaging with Tehran. Europeans, led by Emmanuel Macron, must lead the efforts for détente.

    Cover: Iran: Calculating the cost of US sanctions

    Iran: Calculating the cost of US sanctions

    Over a year into the Trump administration's "maximum pressure" campaign against Iran, the re-imposition of sanctions have not only placed in jeopardy the Iran nuclear deal, but also hit the Iranian economy.
    The panel consisting of Esfandyar Batmanghelidj(Founder, Bourse & Bazaar), David Ramin Jalilvand(CEO, Orient Matters), Tara Sepheri Far(Iran Researcher, Human Rights Watch and chaired by Ellie Geranmayeh (Deputy Head of the MENA Programme, ECFR) looked at all the costs associated with the US sanctions policy including the impact on ordinary Iranians, the Iranian leadership and how this ties into the recent wave of protests across the country.
    The event on 3rd December considered the impact of the US sanctions on trade between Europe and Iran, particularly in the humanitarian sector.

    Recorded on 3 December 2019 in Berlin.

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    EU support for Lebanon: If not now, when? (Commentary)

    René Wildangel - 29 November 2019

    The Lebanese desire for change is not going to go away. The EU should place itself at the heart of smoothing this transition.

    Italy’s Libyan conundrum: The risks of short-term thinking (Commentary)

    Arturo Varvelli and Matteo Villa - 26 November 2019

    By prioritising short-term gains in irregular migration and energy security, Italy and the EU have helped create an unsustainable security and political situation in Libya.

    Open letter: Call for a managed return of ISIS foreign fighters (Commentary)

    - 26 November 2019

    A number of ECFR Council Members urge European governments to immediately begin a programme of managed repatriation of ISIS foreign fighters in Syria.

    Germany’s quiet leadership on the Libyan war (Commentary)

    René Wildangel & Tarek Megerisi - 20 November 2019

    Although Germany’s mediation role in the Libyan conflict has received relatively little attention so far, this might change if its initiative leads to a peace conference – or, alternatively, a collapse of the political process.

    Sudan’s chance for democracy (Commentary)

    Jean-Baptiste Gallopin - 15 November 2019

    EU support for Sudan’s new prime minister is welcome in addressing the urgent challenges of the country’s political transition. But it will take more than economic reform to bring peace and stability to Sudan.

    Cover: Yemen - Seizing the moment of oppurtunity?

    Yemen - Seizing the moment of oppurtunity?

    Recording of the Lunch Discussion analysing Yemen's role in the current Gulf crisis and how recent regional developments will have an impact on the UN-coordinated peace process.

    Almost a year after the widely praised UN-sponsored Stockholm Agreement, there have been significant changes in the Yemeni war but peace appears no nearer. Focus has shifted away from the Hodeida front, leading to the UAE’s military disengagement from Yemen, and leaving Saudi Arabia in sole charge of the war at a time when finding an appropriate response to the September attacks on ARAMCO remains its priority. Within Yemen itself, in recent months, military action and negotiations have concentrated on the summer’s developments in the South, and Saudi attempts to solve the impasse created by southern separatist takeover of Aden, revealing serious differences between the two main members of the Saudi-led coalition.

    Our speakers addressed the role Yemen plays in the overall Gulf crisis, including Gulf States perspectives resulting from US volatility, recent and potential developments in the UN-coordinated peace process and the implications of recent internal events in the country.

    Recorded on 14 November 2019.

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    Cover: Iran & the US escalation game - What Europe can do?

    Iran & the US escalation game - What Europe can do?

    In this episode, live from Brussels, Ellie Geranmayeh is standing in for our host Mark Leonard to discuss Iran’s further withdrawal from the 2015 Nuclear Agreement. 
    After the Iran Strategy Meeting meeting, she met with Hossein Mousavian (Princeton University), Ilan Goldenberg (Center for a New American Security) and Nasser Hadian (University of Teheran) to analyse the responses coming from the US and European governments, in particular from France. By marking the 40th anniversary of the Iran Hostage Crisis, they look back on how this has shaped the Iran-US relations in the past 4 years. Moreover, after one year, how has the re-imposition of the US sanction impacted Iran domestically? 

    This podcast was recorded on 6 November 2019.

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