Arab Spring
The Arab Awakening One Year On: A European Perspective
The Arab awakening that commenced late in 2010 has precipitated vast political changes in Arab nations. While the upheaval continues in many societies, nations such as Egypt and Tunisia continue to alter the structure of their societies in an effort to move away from totalitarian regimes. Admittedly, the success of these revolutions… Read more >
Is the Arab Spring a Turning Point in EU-Turkey Relations?
Many thought the Arab Spring would be a turning point not only across the Middle East region, but also in relations with its neighbors. Rana Deep Islam argues that the time is ripe for greater EU-Turkey cooperation in addressing ongoing risks — including international terrorism, the spread of WMD, and organized crime. … Read more >
The Arab Awakening One Year On: A European Perspective
In early 2011, the debate in the European Union about the repercussions of the Arab awakening that started in late 2010 and continues to this day was largely framed in terms of opportunities rather than risks. The prospect of democracy finally making headway in one of the most static regions of the… Read more >
New Ground for Cooperation: The Arab Spring as a Turning Point for EU-Turkey Relations
Though politicians use the word “historic” in a fairly inflationary way, there is no better terminology for describing what the international community is witnessing in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). The uprisings that are sweeping over the region astonished Western observers as they replaced an existent narrative. After the 9/11… Read more >
Politics of Dilemma: Turkish and EU Approaches Toward Syria
As Turkey continues to push for membership in the EU, many factors play a role in whether or not its acceptance will take hold. In this Transatlantic Perspectives essay, DAAD/AICGS Fellow Rana Deep Islam looks at Turkey and the EU’s respective foreign policy strategies, using the recent unrest in Syria as a… Read more >
Why the EU needs a Special Representative to Respond to the Arab Spring
The European Union and its member states continue to struggle to find a response to the Arab Spring, write former DAAD/AICGS Fellow Almut Möller and Cornelius Adebahr. Past policy approaches had little impact on the area’s regimes, if anything doing more to support them than reform them. In this report for the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP), the authors argue that the EU should reorient its policies and utilize one of its established and successful foreign policy instruments and name an EU Special Representative for North Africa.
