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The EU Addressing the Challenge of Contested Statehood
Issue:
Volume 6, Issue 3, September 2023
Pages:
64-79
Received:
24 June 2023
Accepted:
13 July 2023
Published:
31 July 2023
Abstract: The E. U.’s role as an international player began to upgrade alongside the effort to coordinate its external action by adopting a common foreign and security policy (CFSP). In this context, the EU has developed a wide range of policies and policy instruments that fall within its areas of legislative competence and extend from external trade and bilateral relations to the support of democratic institutions and international cooperation. After the end of the Cold –War, the European Union addressed the challenges arising from the emergence of post-conflict states, a considerable number of which were in its neighborhood. The E. U. pursuit of addressing challenges related to contested states has evolved over the years and varies significantly depending on the conflict, the bilateral relations, and the geopolitical context. Peacebuilding and state-building interventions were necessary for the post-conflict transition and socioeconomic rehabilitation of these fragile states with contested sovereignty. The E. U. supported countries in consolidating peace and building a modern state with political and economic means. Moreover, the E. U. has adjusted its interventions to the realities and conditions prevailing in each country. Since the impact of the E. U.’s integrated intervention on contested states remains a research concern, the present dissertation aims to address whether the E. U., as a global power, has the mechanisms and appropriate political skills to face the challenges presented in countries with contested statehood.
Abstract: The E. U.’s role as an international player began to upgrade alongside the effort to coordinate its external action by adopting a common foreign and security policy (CFSP). In this context, the EU has developed a wide range of policies and policy instruments that fall within its areas of legislative competence and extend from external trade and bil...
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The Unpredictability of US Foreign Policy in the Middle East: The Increase and the Impact on the Region’s Security
Issue:
Volume 6, Issue 3, September 2023
Pages:
80-86
Received:
21 July 2023
Accepted:
9 August 2023
Published:
22 August 2023
Abstract: This paper discusses the (un)predictability of US foreign policy in the MENA region and the impact of this (un)predictability on the region’s (in)security in the light of some IR approaches with a focus on Iran's nuclear program during the presidencies of Barack Obama and Donald Trump. The analysis of Obama’s and Tump’s policies towards Iran’s nuclear program reveals that there were reoccurring fluctuations and inconsistencies in US policies not only across administrations, but it was also noted during the same administration. These fluctuations and inconsistencies made US policies uncertain and difficult to predict, which affirms the notion of ‘behavioral repetition’ in IR theory. Furthermore, the analysis reveals that the way regional actors responded to US unpredictable policies implied a mixture of fear and confusion, which endorses the realists’ and cognitivists’ understanding of the notion of uncertainty in IR respectively. Last but not least, we concluded that these responses destabilized the region or risked to destabilize it. The advancement of Iran's nuclear program, the war in Yemen and its destructive effects, the outbreak of mutual attacks between Iran and Israel, the risk to destabilize Iraq again and the deepening of fissures between members of the GCC are all cases in point. This conclusion is in line with Quincy Wright’s argument which highlights the importance of predictable political behavior and trust in maintaining the international order. In the same vein, Trump’s withdrawal from JCPOA and the conflicts it created support one of the premises of the liberal thought in IR, which highlight the importance of international institutions and international agreements in reducing conflicts and uncertainty.
Abstract: This paper discusses the (un)predictability of US foreign policy in the MENA region and the impact of this (un)predictability on the region’s (in)security in the light of some IR approaches with a focus on Iran's nuclear program during the presidencies of Barack Obama and Donald Trump. The analysis of Obama’s and Tump’s policies towards Iran’s nucl...
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The Post-1990s Water Diplomacy in Eastern Nile Basin: Changing the Power Asymmetry
Issue:
Volume 6, Issue 3, September 2023
Pages:
87-98
Received:
7 June 2023
Accepted:
10 July 2023
Published:
6 September 2023
Abstract: There have been diplomatic tensions and instances of threatening and concerned rhetoric between the countries of the Nile, especially between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia. The main purpose of this paper is to examine the post 1990 water diplomacy in eastern Nile River basin in relation to changing the power asymmetry. For a long period of time in eastern Nile basin Egypt used to contain and influence the behavior of Sudan and other Nile River riparian states, particularly over issues pertaining to the utilization of the Nile’s waters. This paper argues the post 1990 multi-lateral water diplomacy especially NBI reduce the established power asymmetries, while contributing to the "sustainable socio economic development of all riparian’s through the equitable utilization of, and benefit from, the common Nile basin water resources. On the other hand, following NBI, Ethiopia shifted from ‘silent partner’ to ‘bargaining power’ so that it involved through a successive water deal among the nine countries. Consequently, in 2009, the discussions among the Nile riparian are on establishing a cooperative framework agreement reached and the constructions of Ethiopia Grand Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile near the Ethiopian- Sudanese border transforming Ethiopia from “silent partner” to “influential partner and it is considered as a historic event not only for Ethiopia but also for the members of NBI’s. Drawing from lesson this article suggested that the Egyptians stand might not be consistence and the discussions and negation of Ethiopia on GERD project increasingly signaled a more flexible position on cooperating with the upstream states and harnessing its own water resources, away from Egyp.
Abstract: There have been diplomatic tensions and instances of threatening and concerned rhetoric between the countries of the Nile, especially between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia. The main purpose of this paper is to examine the post 1990 water diplomacy in eastern Nile River basin in relation to changing the power asymmetry. For a long period of time in east...
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