Middle East and North Africa
War for the Future in Israel and Palestine
By Daniel Roldán · 31/10/2023
Executive summary With its attack on October 7th, Hamas intended to halt the peace agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia, as well as question Israel’s ability to provide security cooperation to Arab states that are normalizing their relations with the Jewish state. Hamas also aimed to regionalize the conflict by provoking a strong Israeli response […]
After the elections, geoeconomics will rule Turkey’s foreign policy
By Miquel Vila · 12/05/2023
Main takeaways Turkey’s economic constraints, rather than ideological priorities, will determine the foreign policy of the winner of Sunday’s election. Tensions with the West are set to ease. Even if Erdogan wins, he will have to take a more conciliatory approach towards the EU and in issues like Sweden’s accession to NATO. The EU represents […]
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine: how will it affect the Middle East and North Africa?
By Rosa Cabús · 10/06/2022
On February 24th 2022, Russia launched a full-scale military invasion of Ukraine. The incursion, which is still ongoing, has put into question the generally tacitly undisputed norm against territorial conquest. Since the Second World War, this principle has assured stability in the turbulent regions of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), often at the […]
Turkey’s ‘Asia Anew’ Initiative and Antalya Diplomacy Forum
By Ahmet Faruk ISIK · 04/04/2022
Two key Turkish Foreign Policy platforms played a joint role during March 2021; ‘Asia Anew’ and Antalya Diplomacy Forum. The Antalya Diplomacy Forum was held on March 11-12-13. The first meeting between Ukraine and Russia after the war was also held at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum. This key meeting was hosted by Turkey’s Foreign Minister […]
Algeria and Morocco: The New Divorce of Intimate Enemies
By Catalonia Global Institute · 18/11/2021
Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra announced on August 24, 2021 the breaking of diplomatic relations with the Kingdom of Morocco. The conclusion to a succession of disagreements and cross-provocations acquired renewed intensity after the normalization of relations between Rabat and Tel Aviv in December 2020. On July 31, on the occasion of the Feast of […]
Libya, the Government of National Unity, an opportunity for peace after ten years of war?
By David Forniès · 30/04/2021
(Input from Sarah Feuer, Ben Fishman, Wolfgang Pusztai, and Aude Thomas is taken from e-mail interviews that these four experts have given to the author in exclusive for this Catalonia Global Institute article.) Libya, marred by a decade of armed conflict and division, has sworn in an interim unity government led by businessman Abdul Hamid […]
The Abraham Accords: the vindication of revisionist Zionism?
By Daniel Roldán · 26/02/2021
On 13th August 2020, Israel and the United Arab Emirates surprised the world by announcing a historic peace agreement that ensured the Emirati recognition of the State of Israel and fully normalized the diplomatic relations between both countries. In exchange, Israel dropped out plans to annex certain areas of the Palestinian-occupied territories in the West […]
Joe Biden’s presidency and the possible geopolitical shifts in the Middle East
By Yeghia Tashjian · 29/01/2021
President Joe Biden has inherited a state of disorder in the Middle East from Donald Trump. Powers such as Russia and Turkey have filled the vacuum as the US has, to a certain degree, isolated itself from regional issues. Biden is expected to make a comeback to the region that, to some extent, goes through […]