Climate of opportunity: Iraq’s new government as regional conciliator
Iraq’s new prime minister is well placed to negotiate both the pitfalls of domestic politics and to play a mediating role within the Middle East
Syria / Iraq / Lebanon
Vote to nowhere: Why Iraq doesn’t need another snap election
Europeans should avoid supporting a snap election simply because a political leader is unsatisfied with the result of a government formation process and threatens violence in response
Deadlocked and loaded: Iraq’s political inertia
Iraqi leaders’ inability to form a government or deal with national challenges is destroying the legitimacy of the state. They need to appoint a new type of prime minister.
Early warning: How Iraq can adapt to climate change
Climate change is increasing the strain on Iraqi society and public services. Despite this, the country’s political figures are overlooking the huge benefits that climate investment would bring.
From parliament to street: Iraq’s emerging politics of domination
Much of Iraq’s post-war history has been a question of survival of the state. Now, Shia politicians are driving an intra-sect competition for leadership.
Turkey’s open door closes: How Europe can better support Syrian refugees
If Turkey and other countries begin deporting more Syrians back to Syria, Europe could experience a new wave of arrivals. European policymakers need to devise a more sustainable, longer-term approach to the issue.
Stall or nothing: Iraq’s failure to form a new government
Iraq’s recent election upended the informal political agreement that had dominated its politics since 2003. European countries should press Iraqi leaders to break the current deadlock in parliament.
Council of war: The future of UN cooperation on Bosnia and Syria
Europe needs to prepare for a breakdown of multilateral cooperation with Russia. Yet, in doing so, it should be careful not to provide space for Moscow to justify unilateral action of its own.
Unsettled: The impact of the Russia-Ukraine crisis on the Middle East and North Africa
Heightened conflict in Ukraine could have serious consequences for European interests in the Middle East and North Africa. It could further disrupt energy supplies, exacerbate food insecurity, and help states in the region gain leverage over the US and Europe.
Stuck in limbo: How Europe can protect Syrian refugees
Europeans who have at heart the sustainable return of refugees, in line with Europe’s core interests and with the will of the Syrian people, should focus on ensuring that conditions on the ground in Syria allow for safe, voluntary, and dignified returns
Publications
Early warning: How Iraq can adapt to climate change
Climate change is increasing the strain on Iraqi society and public services. Despite this, the country’s political figures are overlooking the huge benefits that climate investment would bring.
People before politicians: How Europeans can help rebuild Lebanon
Lebanon is home to key strategic interests for the EU, which does not want another failed state on the Mediterranean
The gulf between them: What Arab Gulf countries can learn from Iran’s approach to Iraq
An Iraq that has diverse regional relationships is more likely to be stable and secure, in line with European interests in the Middle East
Torn between two allies: How Europeans can reduce Iraqi dependence on Iran and the US
Europe should help the Kadhimi government undertake political and economic reform, increase its geopolitical autonomy, and take on a greater security role
A new Gaza: Turkey’s border policy in northern Syria
EU member states can find ways to cooperate with Turkey to support stabilisation in parts of the safe zone, without violating their interests and core principle
Society max: How Europe can help Syrians survive Assad and coronavirus
European governments should pivot to a strategy focused on protecting those societal forces that are still standing and that can help salvage a better future
Beyond good and evil: Why Europe should bring ISIS foreign fighters home
EU member states have failed to come up with a coherent policy on how to handle the hundreds of their citizens having travelled to join ISIS in Syria
Can Assad win the peace?
Introduction After eight years of war, the Syrian government has reasserted control over much of the territory it lost to opposition and foreign forces. As…
The displacement dilemma: Should Europe help Syrian refugees return home?
Introduction After eight years of fighting and destruction resulting in the largest humanitarian and refugee crisis of our time, the government of Bashar al-Assad…
When the weapons fall silent: Reconciliation in Sinjar after ISIS
Hundreds of thousands of displaced persons in Sinjar are attempting to rebuild their lives after the brutal reign of ISIS
Articles
Climate of opportunity: Iraq’s new government as regional conciliator
Iraq’s new prime minister is well placed to negotiate both the pitfalls of domestic politics and to play a mediating role within the Middle East
Vote to nowhere: Why Iraq doesn’t need another snap election
Europeans should avoid supporting a snap election simply because a political leader is unsatisfied with the result of a government formation process and threatens violence in response
Deadlocked and loaded: Iraq’s political inertia
Iraqi leaders’ inability to form a government or deal with national challenges is destroying the legitimacy of the state. They need to appoint a new type of prime minister.
From parliament to street: Iraq’s emerging politics of domination
Much of Iraq’s post-war history has been a question of survival of the state. Now, Shia politicians are driving an intra-sect competition for leadership.
Turkey’s open door closes: How Europe can better support Syrian refugees
If Turkey and other countries begin deporting more Syrians back to Syria, Europe could experience a new wave of arrivals. European policymakers need to devise a more sustainable, longer-term approach to the issue.
Stall or nothing: Iraq’s failure to form a new government
Iraq’s recent election upended the informal political agreement that had dominated its politics since 2003. European countries should press Iraqi leaders to break the current deadlock in parliament.
Council of war: The future of UN cooperation on Bosnia and Syria
Europe needs to prepare for a breakdown of multilateral cooperation with Russia. Yet, in doing so, it should be careful not to provide space for Moscow to justify unilateral action of its own.
Unsettled: The impact of the Russia-Ukraine crisis on the Middle East and North Africa
Heightened conflict in Ukraine could have serious consequences for European interests in the Middle East and North Africa. It could further disrupt energy supplies, exacerbate food insecurity, and help states in the region gain leverage over the US and Europe.
Stuck in limbo: How Europe can protect Syrian refugees
Europeans who have at heart the sustainable return of refugees, in line with Europe’s core interests and with the will of the Syrian people, should focus on ensuring that conditions on the ground in Syria allow for safe, voluntary, and dignified returns
Lebanon: The cost of impunity
The August 2020 explosion left Lebanon in disarray, and thus far, the country’s principal political parties have united to delay, impede, and undermine the investigation
Specials
Part of the problem: A better European approach to human rights in the Middle East and North Africa
European states face accusations of neglecting the matter of human rights in their southern neighbourhood, and even of being complicit. Yet they are failing to maximise the influence they could bring to bear.
Deep sea rivals: Europe, Turkey, and new eastern Mediterranean conflict lines
The eastern Mediterranean is becoming ever more perilous as geopolitical fault lines steadily enmesh the region. These rifts emerge from the Cyprus ‘frozen conflict’, competition for valuable gas fields, and the increasingly entangled wars in Libya and Syria.
The Middle East’s new battle lines
An ECFR guide to the key disputes threatening to spark a wider Middle Eastern war
The Islamic State through regional lens
This series examines the reaction of key Middle Eastern actors, as well as looking at European policy options, the dynamics driving IS itself, and the impact within Syria and Iraq respectively.
Podcasts
Syria’s war, Europe’s problem
What does the re-engagement of regional actors mean for the future of Syria? And what role can Europe play to create breathing space in the country?
How the Turkey-UAE Rivalry is remaking the Middle East
How can the EU prevent the Turkey-UAE rivalry from destabilising European security and foreign policy?
ECFR Conversation with Ibrahim Kalin
ECFR Conversation with Ibrahim Kalin, Spokesman and Senior Advisor to the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Chaired by Julien Barnes-Dacey, Director of ECFR’s…
Many elephants in the room: the EU and the Turkey, Syria, coronavirus and refugee crises
The European Union faces a multi-crisis situation at the moment. As the conflict in Idlib and the circumstances at the Greek-Turkish border has erupted, Europe…
After Baghdadi is before Baghdadi: How the West still has to fight ISIS
How will IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s killing impact ISIS as a terror organisation and the situation in Syria? Host Mark Leonard is joined by…
Europe with no cards to play: Erdoğan, Trump, and Europe’s weaknesses
Turkey's offensive into northeast Syria is moving at an unprecedented pace with grave consequences. Europe's utter irrelevance in the face of US withdrawal from the Turkish/Syrian…
The US role in Syria
Anthony Dworkin steps in for Mark Leonard and discusses the US strategy in Syria with Asli Aydintasbas, Julien Barnes-Dacey and Jasmin El-Gamal. The podcast was recorded…
Russia and the Middle East
Podcast de notre conférence du 1 octobre en partenariat avec l’Institut d’études de sécurité de l’Union européenne (EUISS) : « Russia and the Middle East…
The Idlib crisis – Can Turkey and Europe avert disaster?
Mark Leonard examines the looming Syrian-Russian military action in Idlib in discussion with ECFR experts Asli Aydıntaşbaş, Julien Barnes-Dacey, and Almut Möller. What do Turks…
The role of France in the Middle East
Is France alone in the desert? ECFR experts Julien Barnes-Dacey and Manuel Lafont Rapnouil discuss how France can lead Europe in the Middle East
Events
13 Dec
Part of the problem? A better European approach to human rights in the Middle East and North Africa
How can Europeans more effectively advance their human rights agenda as part of, and while maintaining, their broader relationships with regional states?
14 Feb
Pourquoi l’Europe doit-elle rapatrier ses ressortissants combattant pour l’EI ?
Madame, Monsieur, cher.e.s ami.e.s de l’ECFR, Nous avons le plaisir de vous inviter à un Black Coffee Morning sur le thème suivant :…
27 Nov
Should Europe bring ISIS foreign fighters back home?
The ECFR chairs a morning session on the highly sensitive topic about Europe´s ISIS fighters who left the continent and are now detained in Syria. What should Europe do? This is the question the experts aim to answer in this open black coffee morning event.
6 Nov
Repatriating the children of ISIS members: the need for a pan-European effort
An off-the-record discussion on the need for a pan-European effort for repatriating the children of ISIS members
31 Oct
Trump’s pull out: What next for Syria and what next for European Policy?
A panel discussion on the effects of the withdrawal of American troops from Syria and the EUs possibilities with regards to reacting to the ongoing crisis
17 May
Where next for Syrians ?
Nous avons le plaisir de vous inviter à une table-ronde avec Jasmine El-Gamal, Bassma Kodmani et Julien Barnes-Dacey sur le thème suivant : « Where next for Syrians ? »
14 May
Where next for Syria?
Discussion of recent developments in Syria and the implications for European policy toward the ongoing crisis.
28 Mar
Le retour des combattants terroristes étrangers dans l’Union Européenne
Nous avons le plaisir de vous inviter à un Black Coffee Morning, en présence de Marc Hecker, Sharon Weill, Anthony Dworkin et Manuel Lafont Rapnouil, directeur du bureau de Paris de l’ECFR sur le thème suivant : « Le retour des combattants terroristes étrangers dans l’Union Européenne ».
5 Feb
Irak : quels enjeux pour l’Europe ?
Nous avons le plaisir de vous inviter à un Black Coffee Morning, en présence de Delphine O, Florence Gaub et Camille Lons sur le thème suivant : « Irak : quels enjeux pour l'Europe ? ».
2 Oct
« Comment la France peut remobiliser l’Europe au Moyen-Orient »
Nous avons le plaisir de vous inviter à une table ronde avec Nicholas Westcott, Directeur la Royal African Society de Londres, Gurvan Le Bras, Chargé de mission au CAPS, Manuel Lafont Rapnouil, Directeur du bureau de Paris de l’ECFR, et Claude Guibal, grand reporter à France Inter
In the media
It may be counter-intuitive, but the path towards meeting these U.S. and Western interests rests on getting a deal between the different actors before new escalation erupts.
Aslı Aydıntaşbaş and Julien Barnes-Dacey write about a new path for Syria’s Kurds
We’ve just gone to the brink of civil war and I wonder if, when things settle down and everybody takes a deep breath, if anyone will be held accountable?
This past week is a wake-up call to remind everyone that Iraqi politics isn’t black and white, and everyone is armed, so we need to be careful
Whatever it does mean, in typical Sadrist fashion, there is always backtracking expected
He’s made such a show, going into the Green Zone and occupying parliament
Hamzeh Hadad comments on the latest developments in Iraq’s political crisis