Middle East; Israel/Palestine; Western Sahara; conflict resolution; international law and armed conflict
Languages
English, Arabic, French
Biography
Hugh Lovatt is a senior policy fellow with the Middle East and North Africa Programme at the European Council on Foreign Relations. Lovatt has focussed extensively on regional geopolitics and advised European policymakers on the conflicts in Israel-Palestine and Western Sahara. He is regularly interviewed and quoted in international media, including by the New York Times, BBC, Christian Science Monitor, Financial Times, AFP, Le Monde, France24, and Al Jazeera.
Lovatt previously worked as a researcher for International Crisis Group and as a Schuman Fellow in the European Parliament focusing on Middle-East policy. He also worked for Aga Khan University’s Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations as an Arabic translator.
Lovatt studied Arabic at the Institute for Arab and Islamic Studies at Exeter University as well as at the Institut Français du Proche-Orient (IFPO) in Damascus. He then went on to earn an MA in Near and Middle Eastern Studies at the London School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), where he majored in Anthropology. Lovatt is Chairman of the Brussels-based European Middle East Project (EuMEP).
As Donald Trump prepares for his second US presidency, Iranian and Israeli military manoeuvring during President Biden’s lame-duck period risks drawing the US into all-out war in the Middle East
The CJEU has blocked the EU’s inclusion of Western Sahara in its trade and fishery agreements with Morocco. The bloc should now open talks with Polisario to reach a compromise trade deal and support UN-led peace efforts
Mark Leonard welcomes Julien Barnes-Dacey, Ellie Geranmayeh, and Hugh Lovatt to discuss the regional war in the Middle East one year on from the 7 October Hamas attack on Israel
The Middle East is on the brink of a full-blown regional conflict. Western efforts to secure a ceasefire between Israel and Hizbullah will fail without pressure on Israel to accept a ceasefire in Gaza
While Israeli frustration with Netanyahu is building, he will likely stay prime minister and continue to obstruct a credible diplomatic track with Palestinians. But even if he were removed from office, Israeli resistance to Palestinian self-determination would remain
The International Court of Justice has ruled that Israel’s continued occupation of Palestinian territory is unlawful. Now Europe must support further differentiation measures, and recognise Palestine’s right to self-determination
Schuman area, Brussels. Address will be shared after registration.
Josep Borrell Fontelles is the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission. He was President of the…
Mark Leonard welcomes Hugh Lovatt, Julien Barnes-Dacey, and Jeremy Shapiro to discuss the current situation in Gaza and the possible futures of the war
Europeans should leverage their relationships with the Palestinian Authority to revive Palestinian institutions and reverse the PA’s slide towards authoritarianism
Europeans need to deal with the Middle East as it is rather than as they want it to be, while staying focused on the principles needed to secure longer-term stability
The UN should pursue a “free association” option for Western Sahara – a third way that offers a realistic means of fulfilling Sahrawi self-determination
The EU and the US have a decisive role to play in ensuring the electoral process succeeds. In doing so, they can support Palestinian political renewal and improve prospects for a sustainable peace agreement with Israel
Introduction War threatens to engulf Gaza’s fragile calm. In each of the three recent conflicts that have shaken the Gaza Strip, fighting between Palestinian factions…
The sixth ECFR Foreign Policy Scorecard highlights the EU’s diminishing ability to influence its neighbours, and the neighbourhood’s growing impact on the EU
As Donald Trump prepares for his second US presidency, Iranian and Israeli military manoeuvring during President Biden’s lame-duck period risks drawing the US into all-out war in the Middle East
The CJEU has blocked the EU’s inclusion of Western Sahara in its trade and fishery agreements with Morocco. The bloc should now open talks with Polisario to reach a compromise trade deal and support UN-led peace efforts
The Middle East is on the brink of a full-blown regional conflict. Western efforts to secure a ceasefire between Israel and Hizbullah will fail without pressure on Israel to accept a ceasefire in Gaza
While Israeli frustration with Netanyahu is building, he will likely stay prime minister and continue to obstruct a credible diplomatic track with Palestinians. But even if he were removed from office, Israeli resistance to Palestinian self-determination would remain
The International Court of Justice has ruled that Israel’s continued occupation of Palestinian territory is unlawful. Now Europe must support further differentiation measures, and recognise Palestine’s right to self-determination
Recognising the state of Palestine is an important step towards Palestinian self-determination. But to be impactful, it needs to be accompanied by concrete measures to challenge negative dynamics on both the Israeli and Palestinian sides
To prevent further catastrophic suffering and regional instability, European governments should urgently resume funding UNRWA – the UN agency responsible for supporting Palestinian refugees
The US and UK strike on Houthi targets in Yemen has done little to deter the Iranian-backed group from its attacks in the Red Sea. Europeans should instead launch their own maritime operation, engage in diplomacy, and call for a ceasefire in Gaza
European governments need a deeper engagement strategy to draw these powerful actors into inclusive political processes and power-sharing structures that can help stabilise the region
Aslı AydıntaÅŸbaÅŸ, Julien Barnes-Dacey, Cinzia Bianco, John V. Bowlus, Hugh Lovatt, Tarek Megerisi, Michaël Tanchum
Special
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
Julien Barnes-Dacey, Anthony Dworkin, Ellie Geranmayeh, Hugh Lovatt, Tarek Megerisi, René Wildangel
Special
Turmoil in the Middle East and north Africa directly affects Europeans. Yet their influence in the region has never been weaker. This project maps Europe’s role across the Middle East and north Africa, making the case that Europeans can do more to leverage their influence in pursuit of core interests
ECFR’s Differentiation Tracker provides a snapshot of third state relations with Israel – and the extent to which these contain a clearly defined territorial definition that explicitly excludes Israeli settlements constructed on occupied territory in line with UNSCR 2334
This interactive web project charts the constellation of political players as Palestinians approach a period of political change. Over 100 pen portraits reveal new insights into the personalities and power structures that will shape the future of Palestinian politics
Fatima Ayub, Daniel Levy, Hugh Lovatt, Dimi Reider, Mattia Toaldo
Special
ECFR’s innovative project Two State Stress Test provides a health-check on whether developments across seven different areas are serving to strain or sustain a possible two-state outcome for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Mark Leonard welcomes Julien Barnes-Dacey, Ellie Geranmayeh, and Hugh Lovatt to discuss the regional war in the Middle East one year on from the 7 October Hamas attack on Israel
Mark Leonard welcomes Hugh Lovatt, Julien Barnes-Dacey, and Jeremy Shapiro to discuss the current situation in Gaza and the possible futures of the war
Mark Leonard welcomes Eran Etzion, Julien Barnes-Dacey, and Hugh Lovatt to discuss Hamas’s offensive against Israel and its effects on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the wider Middle East
In this special ECFR discussion, MENA Policy Fellow Hugh Lovatt interviews Daniel Seidemann, the Founder of Terrestrial Jerusalem and an Israeli attorney that specialises in…
When US-President Donal Trump revealed his much-awaited plan for peace for Israel and Palestine it was set to solve one of the world's longest-running conflict
Podcast de notre discussion du 19 juin « The future of Israeli-Palestinian conflict: towards annexation and illiberalism? » en présence de Yehuda Shaul,…
Ruth Citrin speaks with Ellie Geranmayeh, Julien Barnes-Dacey and Hugh Lovatt, about the state of play in the MENA region and the considerations for Europeans…
Schuman area, Brussels. Address will be shared after registration.
Josep Borrell Fontelles is the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission. He was President of the…
Hugh Lovatt on Josep Borell initiating talks with Israel
Against this background, Borrell’s proposal (to suspend the broad association agreement with Israel outright) seems less ambitious; intervention does not seem particularly useful
Hugh Lovatt on the West Bank in the Israeli-Palestinian co0nflict
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