CARPO Briefs

25 Brief 05.08.2024

Moving from Rapprochement to Economic Cooperation?

Prospects for Trade Ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran

As both Iran and Saudi Arabia are looking for ways to foster economic growth, the agreement to resume diplomatic ties, signed in March 2023, offers an opportunity for economic cooperation that could mutually benefit the two countries' domestic …

23 Brief 15.12.2022

Cultural Exchange and the Prospects for Inter-Societal Relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran

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 …

22 Brief 08.11.2022

The Role of the Diaspora in Peacebuilding in Yemen

Potentials and Opportunities, Challenges and Constraints

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 …

19 Brief 18.05.2020

The Role of the Private Sector in Peacebuilding in Yemen

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 …

18 Brief 04.05.2020

The Role of Civil Society in Peacebuilding in Yemen

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 …

17 Brief 27.04.2020

The Role of Youth in Peacebuilding in Yemen

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 …

16 Brief 17.04.2020

The Role of the Media in Peacebuilding in Yemen

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 …

15 Brief 06.04.2020

China’s Strategy in the Persian Gulf. A Balancing Act between Riyadh and Tehran [in German]

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 …

14 Brief 27.02.2020

The Role of Women in Peacebuilding in Yemen

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 …

13 Brief 17.07.2019

Tafahum

An Ideational Fundament for West Asia and the Arabian Peninsula

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). …

12 Brief 12.02.2019

A Strained Alliance

Transatlantic Views on the Middle East

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 …

11 Brief 19.12.2018

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 …

10 Brief 20.03.2018

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder among Yemeni Children as a Consequence of the Ongoing War

This CARPO 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). It finds that they have been experiencing …

09 Brief 20.03.2018

Enhancing Women’s Role in Water Management in Yemen

This CARPO 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 …

08 Brief 11.09.2017

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 …

07 Brief 18.04.2017

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 …

06 Brief 28.02.2017

Between Dependence and Diversification

Making Sense of Iran’s Energy

Parallel to the conclusion and implementation of the nuclear deal, Iran’s energy sector has become a subject of interest around the world. An estimated $100 billion in foreign investment are needed for the modernization of the Iranian energy …

05 Brief 24.10.2016

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 …

04 Brief 08.07.2016

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. Conflicts in the Middle East are escalating further, and tensions between GCC states and Iran are …

03 Brief 22.04.2016

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 …

02 Brief 28.10.2015

Turkey’s Parliamentary Elections and the Quest for Stability

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 …

01 Brief 30.01.2015

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 …