by Mirjam Schmidt and Desirée Custers In August 2022, CARPO and Stimson Europe hosted a workshop looking into the potential of cultural diplomacy and cultural exchange between Iran and Saudi Arabia. While the two countries share a rich history of cultural relations, their present-day cultural exchange is minimal due to geopolitical differences. But in spite […]
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The Role of the Diaspora in Peacebuilding in Yemen. Potentials and Opportunities, Challenges and Constraints
by Marie-Christine Heinze and Ewa K. Strzelecka On 12 June 2022, FES Yemen and CARPO, in collaboration with the EU-funded Peace Women project, convened a one-day workshop in Amman, Jordan. The aim of this workshop was to discuss with researchers as well as female and male diaspora representatives challenges and constraints as well as potentials […]
Read more...The Disaster of Yemen’s Flash Floods. Impact of and Local Responses to the Torrential Rains and Flooding in 2020
by Khalid al-Akwa and Tobias Zumbrägel Between March and September 2020, and again in May through July 2021, Yemen experienced periods of torrential rain that resulted in flash flooding. Flash floods are and will continue to be a recurrent natural phenomenon with destructive consequences in Yemen, which has not yet received broader attention. This Brief […]
Read more...Post COVID-19: A Potential for Green Recovery in the Arab Gulf States
by Aisha Al-Sarihi The novel coronavirus pandemic has disrupted the GCC’s focus on environmental sustainability projects, as shoring up economies and protecting human health have become top priorities for governmental countermeasures. This Brief argues that associating COVID-19 economic recovery packages with measures aimed to safeguard the environment and tackle climate change, towards a so-called ‘green […]
Read more...The Role of the Private Sector in Peacebuilding in Yemen
by Tarek Barakat, Ali al-Jarbani and Laurent Bonnefoy This Brief analyzes the state of the private sector in Yemen during the ongoing war and explores its potential to contribute to the country’s peace requirements. It presents challenges entrepreneurs face and the potential contribution of these in sectors that are central to the construction and sustainability […]
Read more...The Role of Civil Society in Peacebuilding in Yemen
by Abdulkarim Qassim, Loay Amin, Mareike Transfeld and Ewa Strzelecka The current political and economic conditions in Yemen make it difficult for CSOs to continue functioning on an effective level, while a lack of human and organizational capacity are hampering project results. Nevertheless, Yemeni CSOs contribute to peace requirements in various sectors and remain an […]
Read more...The Role of Youth in Peacebuilding in Yemen
by Maged al-Kholidy, Yazeed al-Jeddawy and Kate Nevens Despite its major transformative potential, local level youth work is often overlooked by mainstream international discourses on national level peace processes and violent conflict. This Brief sheds light on young peoples’ activism before and during the war, the challenges they are currently facing, their visions for the […]
Read more...The Role of the Media in Peacebuilding in Yemen
by Fatima Saleh, Scott Preston and Mareike Transfeld The increased political capture of the Yemeni media since 2014 has reinforced diverging political discourses and has contributed to polarization across society and to political fragmentation. Practitioners face steep challenges in composing professional stories. Journalists are subject to harassment, intimidation, abduction and violence. Yet, Yemeni journalists remain […]
Read more...China’s Strategy in the Persian Gulf. A Balancing Act between Riyadh and Tehran [in German]
by Julia Gurol and Jacopo Scita This Brief discusses the repercussions of geopolitical developments on China’s strategy in the Persian Gulf. It is argued that China is pursuing strategic hedging by attempting a risky political balancing act in order to prepare for a possible escalation. This Brief is a slightly edited German translation of the […]
Read more...The Role of Women in Peacebuilding in Yemen
by Iman al-Gawfi, Bilkis Zabara and Stacey Philbrick Yadav Yemeni women are laying foundations for sustainable peace through everyday practices that have the capacity to help transform the landscape of women’s rights in the post-war period. Wider recognition of women’s paid and unpaid work in wartime, and the conditions that enable it, could improve the […]
Read more...Tafahum – An Ideational Fundament for West Asia and the Arabian Peninsula
by Christian Koch and Adnan Tabatabai This CARPO Brief discusses the need to construct ideational pillars for a tafahum, or common understanding, of how to define a process towards regional integration and a shared security architecture for West Asia and the Arabian Peninsula (WAAP). This is an evolutionary process, which begins with the essential building […]
Read more...A Strained Alliance. Transatlantic Views on the Middle East
by Adnan Tabatabai This CARPO Brief provides the readers with a reflection of the discussions held during a workshop organized by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS) and CARPO, which brought together policy experts from the think tank communities of Europe and the United States. The focus of the discussions was on specific country contexts (Turkey, […]
Read more...Knowledge in Dialogue. The Role of Academic Exchange in Mitigating Conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia
The sixth meeting of CARPO and the EastWest Institute’s ‘Iran-Saudi Dialogue Initiative’ dealt with knowledge production and knowledge dialogue in context of the highly conflictual relationship between Iran and Saudi Arabia and explored the potential of academic exchanges and scientific cooperation in defusing such tensions.
Read more...Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder among Yemeni Children as a Consequence of the Ongoing War
This brief summarizes initial findings of the author’s research among displaced school children in Sana‘a in spring 2016, based on the internationally recognized Child PTSD Symptoms Scale (CPSS).
Read more...Enhancing Women’s Role in Water Management in Yemen
This brief addresses the relationship between gender and natural resources in conflict-affected Yemen. It describes the impact of the war on women’s access to water resources and sanitation facilities and analyzes the role of women in decision-making and water-distribution processes
Read more...Environmental Challenges in a Conflictive Environment. Iranian and Saudi Perspectives on the Risks of Climate Change and Ecological Deterioration.
The fourth meeting of CARPO and the EastWest Institute’s ‘Iran-Saudi Track 2 Initiative’ dealt with the political, social and economic risks posed by current environmental challenges to Iran and Saudi Arabia alike. The workshop brought together academics, environmental experts, security analysts and former diplomats from Iran and Saudi Arabia as well as international experts.
Read more...Envisioning the Future: Iranian and Saudi Perspectives on the Post-Oil Economy
The third meeting of CARPO and the EastWest Institute’s Iran-Saudi Track 2 Dialogue Initiative was dedicated to the repercussions of changing global energy markets on Iran and Saudi Arabia. The workshop brought together policy experts and economists from Iran and Saudi Arabia as well as experts from Europe.
Read more...Between Dependence and Diversification. Making Sense of Iran’s Energy
In order to make better sense of Tehran’s energy policy and to more accurately assess the overall situation in the Iranian energy sector, this paper argues that attention needs to also be given to Iran’s long-term developments. Unlike the past, Iran is now increasingly utilizing its oil and natural gas production domestically.
Read more...Victimized by Geopolitics. Iranian and Saudi Perspectives on the Refugee Crisis
The second meeting of CARPO and the EastWest Institute’s Iran-Saudi Track 2 Dialogue initiative took place in spring 2016 in Bonn. Current and former diplomats, analysts and security experts from both countries met alongside European scholars and experts to discuss “Iranian and Saudi Perspectives on the Refugee Crisis”.
Read more...The EU’s Balancing Act in the Middle East. How to Engage Iran without Alienating GCC States
Initial hopes that the nuclear agreement between Iran and the E3+3 would increase regional security and decrease political tensions have been dashed. Against this backdrop CARPO organized a conference on EU-Middle East relations early this year.
Read more...Know Your Enemy – Iranian and Saudi Perspectives on ISIL
CARPO and the EastWest Institute have established a confidential track 2 format for Iranian-Saudi dialogue. The first dialogue meeting took place In the fall of 2015 in Brussels. Current and former diplomats, analysts and security experts from both countries met alongside European policy-makers and experts to discuss “Iranian and Saudi Perspectives on ISIL”.
Read more...Turkey’s Parliamentary Elections and the Quest for Stability
by Şafak Baş Turkey is set to hold its parliamentary elections on November 1 in an atmosphere marked by political violence, polarization and insecurity. Regardless of the election outcome, Ankara will need to focus on national reconciliation and the reduction of sociopolitical tensions. Peace talks with the Kurdish PKK must resume. Even as its Western […]
Read more...Making Sense of Iran’s Iraq Policy
Iran’s relationship with Iraq has come into the limelight amid the onslaught of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Iranian policy is geared towards maintaining Iraq’s territorial integrity, secure qualified stability and expand Iran’s economic sphere.
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