![The EU and Middle East and North Africa [What Think Tanks are thinking]](https://i0.wp.com/epthinktank.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/eprs_brie_tt_635562_arableague_final.jpg?fit=1000%2C529&ssl=1)
Written by Marcin Grajewski,
The European Union held its first ever summit with the Arab League in February, highlighting the growing importance of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) in tackling problems such as security, terrorism, migration and energy supply. At their meeting in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, more than 40 leaders from the two blocs discussed issues ranging from ways to fight poverty and reducing irregular migration to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, instability in Libya and wars in Syria and Yemen. The summit’s declaration called for stronger economic and political cooperation as well as efforts to support the multilateral, rules-based international order.
This note offers links to recent commentaries and reports by major international think tanks on the general problems found within the region and some specific countries. More reports on the region can be found in a previous edition of ‘What Think Tanks are Thinking’ published in October 2017. The issue of Iran will be discussed in one of the forthcoming issues of the series.
Morocco-Saudi relations: Trouble amongst royals?
Brookings Institution, March 2019
The EU-Arab Summit: A chance to reset relations with the Arab world?
Centre for European Policy Studies, February 2019
General Haftar’s Offensive in the Fezzan Region and the Italian-French competition
Karim Atlantic Council, February 2019
Libya’s Conflicts Enter a Dangerous New Phase
Stiftung Wissenshaft Und Politik, February 2019
Tunisia in 2019: A pivotal year?
International Crisis Group, February 2019
Contested multilateralism: The United Nations and the Middle East
Menara, Instituto Affari Internazionali, February 2019
Interregnum: The Regional order in the Middle East and North Africa after 2011
Menara, Instituto Affari Internazionali, February 2019
Four game changers in Europe’s south
Carnegie Europe, February 2019
The Middle East’s shifting energy politics
Chatham House, February 2019
La Chine et l’Égypte après le ‘Printemps arabe’: Combler le vide ?
Groupe de Recherche et d’Information sur la Paix et la Sécurité, February 2019
Restoration, transformation and adaptation: Authoritarianism after 2011 in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Iran
Menara, Instituto Affari Internazionali, January 2019
The water-energy-food security nexus in the Western Mediterranean
IEMed, January 2019
A year after the defeat of ISIS in Iraq, what has changed?
Middle East Institute, January 2019
Refugee movements in the Middle East: Old crises, new ideas
Instituto Affari Internazionali, January 2019
Restoration, transformation and adaptation: Authoritarianism after 2011 in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Iran
Danish Institute of International Studies, January 2019
Pushing the boundaries: How to create more effective migration cooperation across the Mediterranean
European Council on Foreign Relations, January 2019
Saudi Arabia as a peace peddler? The limits of Riyadh’s influence over Israeli–Palestinian diplomacy
Instituto Affari Internazionali, January 2019
The lack of disarmament in the Middle East: A thorn in the side of the NPT
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, January 2019
The Levant: Search for a regional order
Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, January 2019
Saudi Arabia, armaments and conflict in the Middle East
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, December 2018
The EU Global Strategy and the MENA Region: In search of resilience
Instituto Affari Internazionali, December 2018
Europe and Iran: The Economic and Commercial Dimensions of a Strained Relationship
Istituto Affari Internazionali, December 2018
Economic policy challenges in Southern and Eastern Mediterranean
Bruegel, December 2018
Short term fixes for long-lasting troubles: Why IMF reforms won’t solve Egypt’s (political) economic problems
Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, December 2018
The quest for a regional order in the Middle East
Egmont, December 2018
The effect of Western engagement on Libyan peace process
Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade, December 2018
Weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East and North Africa
Instituto Affari Internazionali, November 2018
Youth unemployment: Common problem, different solutions?
Bruegel, November 2018
Armed conflicts and the erosion of the state: The cases of Iraq, Libya, Yemen and Syria
Instituto Affari Internazionali, November 2018
Testing the water: How water scarcity could destabilise the Middle East and North Africa
European Council on Foreign Relations, November 2018
As the situation in Gaza worsens, it’s time for the EU to step in: Trump has proven the US can’t help any more
Centre for European Reform, November 2018
Six days, fifty years: The June 1967 war and its aftermath
Institute for National Security Studies, November 2018
How to halt Yemen’s slide into famine
International Crisis Group, November 2018
Building trust: The challenge of peace and stability in the Mediterranean
Istituto per gli Studi di Politica Internazionale, November 2018
Regional geopolitical rivalries in the Middle East: Implications for Europe
Instituto Affari Internazionali, October 2018
Political (dis)order and coercive organisations in the Levant
Clingendael, October 2018
The impact of global decarbonisation policies and technological improvements on oil and gas producing countries in the Middle East and North Africa
Bruegel, October 2018
After Khashoggi disappearance, business sours on Mohammed bin Salman
Chatham House, October 2018
The arc of crisis in the MENA region: Fragmentation, decentralization, and Islamist opposition
Istituto per gli Studi di Politica Internazionale, October 2018
What Egypt’s El-Sisi and the EU have in common when it comes to women’s rights
Centre for European Policy Studies, October 2018
Democratisation after the Arab Spring: how can the EU effectively support Tunisia and Egypt?
Österreichische Gesellschaft für Europapolitik, September 2018
Optimising the impact of European cultural, science and innovation diplomacy in Egypt and Tunisia
Vrije Universiteit Brussel, September 2018
Order from chaos: Stabilising Libya the local way
European Council on Foreign Relations, July 2018
Lebanon-EU relations and ways forward: Qualitative research findings with key stakeholders in Lebanon
Istituto Affari Internazionali, June 2018
Actors in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Interests, narratives and the reciprocal effects of the occupation
Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, June 2018
The Gulf monarchies’ armed forces at the crossroads
Institut français des relations internationales, May 2018
Egypt after the presidential election
Centre for European Policy Studies, May 2018
Saudi Arabia: Back to Baghdad
International Crisis Group, May 2018
Politics of recognition and denial: Minorities in the MENA region
European Institute of the Mediterranean, May 2018
The Middle East’s new battle lines
European Council on Foreign Relations, May 2018
The EU-Tunisia privileged partnership. What next?
European Institute of the Mediterranean, May 2018
Alone in the desert? How France can lead Europe in the Middle East
European Council on Foreign Relations, April 2018
Iran’s priorities in a turbulent Middle East
International Crisis Group, April 2018
Libya: moving beyond the transitional mood
Barcelona Centre for International Affairs, April 2018
How to combat the causes of refugee flows: The EU-Jordan compact in practice
Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, April 2018
Crisis and Breakdown: How Can the EU Foster Resilience in the Middle East and North Africa?
Istituto Affari Internazionali, January 17, 2018
Read this briefing on ‘The EU and Middle East and North Africa‘ in the Think Tank pages of the European Parliament.
