Convulsive events of the last two decades have shattered traditional power dynamics in the Middle East. Emboldened by petrodollars, Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, and Doha have replaced historic centers of gravity in Cairo, Damascus, and Baghdad, with both regional and non-regional actors vying to fill a leadership void. Turkey and Iran, mobilizing both diplomatic and military efforts, seek to carve out a region that serves competing individual interests. Russia, benefiting from decreased U.S. involvement in the region, is re-establishing itself as a global super power. Volatile alliances and conflicting interests continue to shape the battlefields of Syria, Yemen, and Libya. President Trump and his son-in-law Jared Kushner are touting an "Ultimate Deal" as the solution to the Palestinian-Israeli crisis. Egypt is back in the throes of a military dictatorship that is a client state of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, all unified in an effort to isolate Qatar.
On June 2, Columbia Global Centers | Beijing invites you to the 2019 Columbia Beijing Summer International Relations series, "Making Sense of Disorder: Shifting dynamics in the Middle East".
In this event, Professor Safwan Masri, Executive Vice President for Global Centers and Global Development at Columbia University, will discuss recent regional events and their implications, and how regional and global actors are vying to fill a leadership void.
He will be joined by Suolao WANG, Associate Dean of the Institute of Area Studies at Peking University, and Dong LIU, Deputy Director of the Middle East Studies Division at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Bingbing WU, Deputy Director of Department of Arabic Language and Culture at Peking University, will serve as the moderator.
