The Middle East in World Affairs PDF Download

Author: George Lenczowski
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 762

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Author: Mohammed Ayoob
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317811275
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 233

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The Middle East is, and has always been, of major global economic and political importance. First published in 1981, this edited collection analyses many of the crucial issues that have had international repercussions during the second half of the twentieth century, with each paper considering the particular regional problems within the widest possible political framework. Internationally renowned authors consider such areas as the relationship between Israel and the Middle East, the influence of oil on global decision-making, Afghanistan and its neighbours, and the economic issues that the region has faced. A timely and relevant reissue, dealing with problems of continued importance, this volume will be of particular interest to students researching the history of the Middle Eastern conflict and the region’s variety of relationships with the West.

Author: Tareq Y. Ismael
Publisher: Syracuse University Press
ISBN: 9780815623816
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 308

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The Middle East, a few decades ago, was seen to be an autonomous subsystem of the global international political system. More recently, the region has been subordinated to the hegemony of a singular superpower, the US, bolstered by an alliance with Israel and a network of Arab client states. The subordination of the contemporary Middle East has resulted in large part from the disappearance of countervailing forces, for example, global bipolarity, that for a while allowed the Arab world in particular to exercise a modicum of flexibility in shaping its international relations.The aspirations of the indigenous population of the Middle East have been stifled by the dynamics of the unequal global power relationships, and domestic politics of the countries of the region are regularly subordinated to the prerogatives of international markets and the strategic competition of the great powers. Employing the concept of imperialism, defined as a pattern of alliances between a center (rulers) in the Center (developed) country and a center (client regime) in the Periphery (underdeveloped country) - as an overall framework to analyse the subordination of the region, this book is essential reading for students and scholars of the Middle East, International Relations, and Politics in general.

Author: F Gregory Gause, III
Publisher: Council on Foreign Relations
ISBN: 0876095171
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 64

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The United States'' relationship with Saudi Arabia has been one of the cornerstones of U.S. policy in the Middle East for decades. Despite their substantial differences in history, culture, and governance, the two countries have generally agreed on important political and economic issues and have often relied on each other to secure mutual aims. The 1990-91 Gulf War is perhaps the most obvious example, but their ongoing cooperation on maintaining regional stability, moderating the global oil market, and pursuing terrorists should not be downplayed. Yet for all the relationship''s importance, it is increasingly imperiled by mistrust and misunderstanding. One major question is Saudi Arabia''s stability. In this Council Special Report, sponsored by the Center for Preventive Action, F. Gregory Gause III first explores the foundations of Riyadh''s present stability and potential sources of future unrest. It is difficult not to notice that Saudi Arabia avoided significant upheaval during the political uprisings that swept the Middle East in 2011, despite sharing many of the social and economic problems of Egypt, Yemen, and Libya. But unlike their counterparts in Cairo, Sanaa, and Tripoli, Riyadh''s leadership was able to maintain order in large part by increasing public spending on housing and salaries, relying on loyal and well-equipped security forces, and utilizing its extensive patronage networks. The divisions within the political opposition also helped the government''s cause. This is not to say that Gause believes that the stability of the House of Saud is assured. He points out that the top heirs to the throne are elderly and the potential for disorderly squabbling may increase as a new generation enters the line of succession. Moreover, the population is growing quickly, and there is little reason to believe that oil will forever be able to buy social tranquility. Perhaps most important, Gause argues, the leadership''s response to the 2011 uprisings did little to forestall future crises; an opportunity for manageable political reform was mostly lost. Turning to the regional situation, Gause finds it no less complex. Saudi Arabia has wielded considerable influence with its neighbors through its vast oil reserves, its quiet financial and political support for allies, and the ideological influence of salafism, the austere interpretation of Islam that is perhaps Riyadh''s most controversial export. For all its wealth and religious influence, however, Saudi Arabia''s recent record has been less than successful. It was unable to counter Iranian influence in post-Saddam Iraq, it could not prevent Hezbollah taking power in Lebanon, and its ongoing efforts to reconcile Hamas and the Palestinian Authority have come to naught. The U.S.-Saudi relationship has, unsurprisingly, been affected by these and other challenges, including Saudi unhappiness with Washington''s decision to distance itself from Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, the lack of progress on the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, and Iran. For its part, the United States is unhappy with the Saudi intervention in Bahrain and Saudi support for radical Islamists around the region and the world. The two traditional anchors of the U.S.-Saudi relationship-the Cold War and U.S. operation of Riyadh''s oil fields-are, Gause notes, no longer factors. It is no wonder, he contends, that the relationship is strained when problems are myriad and the old foundations of the informal alliance are gone. It would be far better, Gause argues, to acknowledge that the two countries can no longer expect to act in close concert under such conditions. He recommends that the United States reimagine the relationship as simply transactional, based on cooperation when interests-rather than habit-dictate. Prioritizing those interests will therefore be critical. Rather than pressuring Riyadh for domestic political reform, or asking it to reduce global oil prices, Gause recommends that the United States spend its political capital where it really matters: on maintaining regional security, dismantling terrorist networks, and preventing the proliferation of nuclear weapons. There have been few relationships more important to the United States than that with Saudi Arabia, and it is vital that, as it enters a new phase, the expectations and priorities of both countries are clear. In Saudi Arabia in the New Middle East, Gause effectively assesses the challenges and opportunities facing Saudi Arabia and makes a compelling argument for a more modest, businesslike relationship between Washington and Riyadh that better reflects modern realities. As the United States begins reassessing its commitments in the Greater Middle East, this report offers a clear vision for a more limited-but perhaps more appropriate and sustainable-future partnership.

Author: Harry Verhoeven
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0190916680
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 359

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Offers a critical and realistic reassessment of the threats posed to the environment in the Middle East, and what can be done about them.

Author: Tareq Y. Ismael
Publisher: [Syracuse, N.Y.] : Syracuse University Press
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 322

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Author: Steven Cook
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780876093627
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Author: Martin Indyk
Publisher: Knopf
ISBN: 1101947543
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 689

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A perceptive and provocative history of Henry Kissinger's diplomatic negotiations in the Middle East that illuminates the unique challenges and barriers Kissinger and his successors have faced in their attempts to broker peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors. “A wealth of lessons for today, not only about the challenges in that region but also about the art of diplomacy . . . the drama, dazzling maneuvers, and grand strategic vision.”—Walter Isaacson, author of The Code Breaker More than twenty years have elapsed since the United States last brokered a peace agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians. In that time, three presidents have tried and failed. Martin Indyk—a former United States ambassador to Israel and special envoy for the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations in 2013—has experienced these political frustrations and disappointments firsthand. Now, in an attempt to understand the arc of American diplomatic influence in the Middle East, he returns to the origins of American-led peace efforts and to the man who created the Middle East peace process—Henry Kissinger. Based on newly available documents from American and Israeli archives, extensive interviews with Kissinger, and Indyk's own interactions with some of the main players, the author takes readers inside the negotiations. Here is a roster of larger-than-life characters—Anwar Sadat, Golda Meir, Moshe Dayan, Yitzhak Rabin, Hafez al-Assad, and Kissinger himself. Indyk's account is both that of a historian poring over the records of these events, as well as an inside player seeking to glean lessons for Middle East peacemaking. He makes clear that understanding Kissinger's design for Middle East peacemaking is key to comprehending how to—and how not to—make peace.

Author: Mehdi Amineh
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9047422090
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 568

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This anthology unites in one volume two studies of the Greater Middle East in global politics – each conceptual and empirical. First, it is a historical-comparative study of politics and societies in selected Greater Middle Eastern countries from Napoleon’s invasion of Ottoman Egypt in 1798 up until today. It addresses development and change in these societies as results of the complex interactions between external developments, the rise and expansion of European industrialized powers, and internal developments, the disintegration of Islamic Empires, their transformation into nation-states, and their efforts to industrialize and modernize. Second, it is an empirical case study of states and societies of the Greater Middle East in global politics, addressing themes such as nationalism, revolution, political Islam, democracy, globalization, regionalism, revolution, war, energy, and conflict and cooperation. The book is comprised of three parts and nineteen chapters. Contributors include: Mehdi Parvizi Amineh, Simon Bromley, Robert M. Cutler, Louisa Dris-Aït-Hamadouche, S.N. Eisenstadt, Femke Hoogeveen, Henk Houweling, B.M. Jain, Mehran Kamrava, Roger Kangas, Fred H. Lawson, Prithvi Ram Mudiam, Nilgun Onder, Wilbur Perlot, Richard Pomfret, Kurt W. Radtke, Mirzohid Rahimov, Eva Patricia Rakel, and Yahia H. Zoubir.

Author: Willard A. Beling
Publisher: State University of New York Press
ISBN: 079149621X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 374

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In many respects this book represents a considerable departure from traditional works on international relations in the Middle East. Instead of offering partial explanations based on conventional approaches, this book attempts to incorporate studies with different methodological approaches and with the Middle East. Foreign affairs specialists offer balanced and linguistically neutral commentaries, while marshalling empirical data to support their analyses. The result is a broad synthesis which helps the reader see the larger picture despite its complexity. The Middle East is considered as a subordinate system of the international political system in Part 1. The chapters in this section focus on the nations of the area and their interactions within the subsystem. The papers also examine the implications of these interactions to the nations outside the Middle East. In Part 2 the scope of inquiry is enlarged to treat interactions between the major world powers and the nations of the Middle East. Papers in Part 3 focus upon American foreign policy in the Middle East. This portion examines the roles of various special-interest groups such as the oil companies, Zionists, the United States Congress, newspapers, and religious bodies as they relate to the formation of American policy for the Middle East. In essence, The Middle East is an "international relations" study of the Middle East. Additionally, it has new material—the treatment of religious influences upon the Middle East, the attitudes of some major newspapers towards the middle East conflict, and the domestic position of Israel regarding the Arab-Israeli conflict—seldom discussed in other works.