New Perspectives on Middle East Politics: Economy, Society, and International Relations

by Robert Mason (Editor)

Overview

An ideal primer on contemporary Middle East Politics, covering the entire MENA region from an interdisciplinary perspective

This compelling volume examines important and cross-cutting themes in the study of contemporary Middle East and North African politics and international relations in the current climate. Drawing together contributions from scholars based within the region and beyond, it weaves together essential interdisciplinary, conceptually rich, and forward-looking content. Chapters cover population and youth, civil–military relations, soft power and geopolitical competition, regionalization and internationalization of conflict, the role of oil in reconstruction efforts, extra-regional actors, environmental politics, and specifically, the Israel–Palestine conflict. Students are supported with an extended and innovative glossary, including key concepts, actors and abbreviations.

New Perspectives on Middle East Politics serves as an ideal primer and companion volume for scholars of contemporary Middle East Studies, as well as for policy professionals, journalists and the general reader engaging and re-engaging with the region.

Contributor affiliations:

• Mohamed Abdelraouf, Gulf Research Centre, Jeddah, United Arab Emirates
• Dina Arakji, Carnegie Middle East Center, Beirut, Lebanon
• Eyad AlRefai, Lancaster University, Lancashire, England and King Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia
• Philipp Casula, University of Basel, Switzerland
• Ishac Diwan, Paris Sciences et Lettres and Ecole Normale Superieure, Paris, France
• Seif Hendy, American University in Cairo, Egypt
• Simon Mabon, Lancaster University, Lancashire, England
• Robert Mason, Lancaster University, Lancashire, England
• Neil Partrick, freelance consultant, UK

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781649030610
Publisher:	American University in Cairo Press, The
Publication date:	05/25/2021
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	290
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Robert Mason is a Fellow of the Sectarianism, Proxies and De-sectarianisation project at Lancaster University and currently sits on the International Studies Association (ISA) Foreign Policy Analysis Section Executive Board. He was associate professor and director of the Middle East Studies Center at the American University in Cairo 2016-2019, Visiting Scholar in the Department of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University in 2019, and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Oxford in 2016. His research focuses mainly on the international relations of the Middle East, including Gulf politics, Euro-Med and Middle East - Asia relations. He is author or editor of numerous books, including Reassessing Order and Disorder in the Middle East: Regional Imbalance or Disintegration? (2017), Egypt and the Gulf: A Renewed Regional Policy Alliance (2016), Muslim Minority–State Relations: Violence, Integration and Policy (2016), International Politics of the Arab Spring: Popular Unrest and Foreign Policy (2014) and Foreign Policy in Iran and Saudi Arabia: Economics and Diplomacy in the Middle East (2014).
Robert Mason is a fellow of the Sectarianism, Proxies and De-sectarianisation project at Lancaster University and non-resident fellow with the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, and currently sits on the International Studies Association (ISA) Foreign Policy Analysis Section Executive Board. He was associate professor of Middle East Studies at the American University in Cairo (2016–2019), visiting scholar in the Department of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University in 2019, and visiting research fellow at the University of Oxford in 2016. He is the author or editor of numerous books, including Reassessing Order and Disorder in the Middle East: Regional Imbalance or Disintegration? (2017), Egypt and the Gulf: A Renewed Regional Policy Alliance (2016), and Muslim Minority-State Relations: Violence, Integration, and Policy (2016).

Table of Contents

Preface vii

Glossary, Actors, and Abbreviations ix

List of Contributors xxix

Introductio Robert Mason 1

1 Political Economy in the Middle East: The Cases of Demography and Youth Robert Mason Seif Hendy 13

2 Comparative Civil-Military Relations in the Middle East Robert Mason Dina Arakji 35

3 Soft Power and Geopolitical Competition in the Modern Middle East Simon Mabon Eyad AlRefai 71

4 The Regionalization and Internationalization of Conflict Robert Mason Neil Partrick 97

5 The Middle-Oil Country Curse of the Middle East Ishac Diwan 129

6 The Fall and Rise of Extra-Regional Actors Robert Mason Philipp Casula 167

7 Environmental Politics in the Middle East Robert Mason Mobamed Abdelraouf 193

8 The Israel-Palestine Conflict as a Shaping Factor in Regional Politics Robert Mason 215

Postscript Robert Mason 239

Index 253

Editorial Reviews

This timely, informed, and informative book makes a real contribution to contemporary thinking on the politics of the Middle East region. It is particularly welcome in providing new perspectives on old issues ranging from oil to the Israel-Palestine conflict and for its success in locating more recent issues including environmental politics and the shrinking power differential in an increasingly multipolar world in their regional perspectives. On publication, this will be a very helpful read for students and established scholars alike.”—Rory Miller, Georgetown Universityin Qatar

“Although designed primarily as a companion and reference text for students in Middle East studies, this book is far more than that. It provides a broad introduction to the key issues at the heart of the region, with chapters that are both richly detailed and lucidly written. But as its title says, it does so in context, and it is in this respect that the book is so refreshing, timely, and appropriate. Many chapters have a theme or angle embedded in them; geopolitical rivalry is linked to soft power, for example, and economic change to demography and youth. Others are a fresh take on an issue, or a timely examination of an emerging dynamic: chapters on civil-military relations, and on environmental politics, get the attention here that is so lacking in many texts on the region's politics. This book is clear enough to support, or even drive, an undergraduate course on Middle East politics, but detailed and novel enough to be of similar value in a postgraduate one, while scholars with a range of interests are likely to find a number of original ideas and new angles through which to frame their analyses of the region.”— Matthew Gray, School of International Liberal Studies, Waseda University, Japan

“Robert Mason has assembled an impressive array of scholars who, together, provide us with a breadth and depth of analysis on many of the most critical issues facing the region today. This volume is one of the few available that covers such diverse topics as the political economy of youth, civil-military relations, soft power politics, environmental politics, extra-regional actors, and other regional politics. The volume will become an indispensable reference for Middle East Studies students, conscientious journalists, and others who seek breadth and depth of coverage on the region.”— Denis J. Sullivan, Northeastern University

“Media commentary about the Middle East is often breathlessly chasing the latest current events while academic debates can be arcane at times. This volume provides a refreshing middle ground: It debates the politics of the Middle East and its development challenges against the backdrop of history and convincingly explains key concepts of a crucial sub system of international relations. Essential reading for students and executives alike.”— Eckart Woertz, GIGA Institute of Middle East Studies

"Erudite. . . The expert-level writings, often supplemented with data and graphs from recent research offer invaluable insights for policy professionals, journalists, and any reader interested in a deep dive into the extreme complexities of the region. . . especially and unreservedly recommended."— The Midwest Book Review

From the Publisher