The UAE after the Arab Spring

The UAE after the Arab Spring
Author: Khalifa Al-Suwaidi
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 225
Release: 2023-03-23
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0755648056

Why did the Gulf monarchies – and the UAE in particular - avoid the upheavals and challenges of the Arab uprisings? This book examines how the UAE survived the waves of regional unrest. It departs from attributing regime survival to rentier state theory and instead offers a more nuanced approach to understanding the pillars of regime legitimacy upon which the UAE now rests. In doing so, the book sheds light on the transformation of the UAE from a quietist state, which relied almost entirely upon an overseas security guarantor, to an assertive regional power in its own right. Written by an Emirati author who understands the internal dynamics of the country, the book examines the state's proactive foreign policy and the changing domestic and regional environment influencing its decisions. The book argues that the UAE leadership encouraged a new national identity to evolve amid the pressures of modernity, particularly at a time when young Emiratis had access to information beyond government control via social media. This is also part of its shift away from a country based on a rentier economy to a situation where the citizens take more initiative, learn more skills, and increasingly enter the private sector to help the country prosper. This has given rise to a new Emirati identity that is politically conservative, economically neo-liberal and socially liberal. In providing an analysis of the policies of the UAE leadership before and after the Arab Spring, this book is a vital contribution to the literature on Emirati domestic and foreign policy and points to where the country might be headed.

Revisiting the Arab Uprisings

Revisiting the Arab Uprisings
Author: Stéphane Lacroix
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 342
Release: 2018-12-15
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0190057939

Since 2013, the Middle East has experienced a double trend of chaos and civil war, on the one hand, and the return of authoritarianism, on the other. That convergence has eclipsed the political transitions that occurred in the countries whose regimes were toppled in 2011, as if they were merely footnotes to a narrative that naturally led from an "Arab Spring" to an "Arab Winter". This volume aims at rehabilitating those transitions, by considering them as expressions of a "revolutionary moment" whose outcome was never pre-determined, but depended on the choices of a large range of actors. It brings together leading scholars of Arab politics to adopt a comparative approach to a few crucial aspects of those transitions: constitutional debates, the question of transitional justice, the evolution of civil-military relations, and the role of specific actors, both domestic and international.

Kings Or People

Kings Or People
Author: Reinhard Bendix
Publisher: Univ of California Press
Total Pages: 708
Release: 1978
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9780520040908

"It is difficult to decide which is the more impressive: the authority and control with which Mr. Bendix writes of the traditions, the institutions, and the technological and social developments of cultures as diverse as the British, French, German, Russian, and Japanese, or the skill with which he weaves his separate stories into a persuasive scenario of the modern revolution. A remarkable achievement."--Gordon A. Craig, Stanford University ""Kings or People" is equal to the grandeur of its subject: the political origins of the modern world. With Barrington Moore's "Social Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy" and Immanuels Wallerstein's "The Modern World System" which it matches in boldness, while differing radically in perspective, it is one of the truly powerful ventures in comparative historical sociology to have appeared in recent years."--Clifford Geertz "A brilliant achievement that will be equally fascinating for the general reader, the student, and the specialized scholar."--Henry W. Ehrmann

Qatar and the Arab Spring

Qatar and the Arab Spring
Author: Kristian Ulrichsen
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 244
Release: 2014
Genre: History
ISBN: 0190210974

Qatar and the Arab Spring offers a frank examination of Qatar's startling rise to regional and international prominence, describing how its distinctive policy stance toward the Arab Spring emerged. In only a decade, Qatari policy-makers - led by the Emir, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, and his prime minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim Al-Thani - catapulted Qatar from a sleepy backwater to a regional power with truly international reach. In addition to pursuing an aggressive state-branding strategy with its successful bid for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Qatar forged a reputation for diplomatic mediation that combined intensely personalized engagement with financial backing and favorable media coverage through the Al-Jazeera. These factors converged in early 2011 with the outbreak of the Arab Spring revolts in North Africa, Syria, and Yemen, which Qatari leaders saw as an opportunity to seal their regional and international influence, rather than as a challenge to their authority, and this guided their support of the rebellions against the Gaddafi and Assad regimes in Libya and Syria. From the high watermark of Qatari influence after the toppling of Gaddafi in 2011, that rapidly gave way to policy overreach in Syria in 2012, Coates Ulrichsen analyses Qatari ambition and capabilities as the tiny emirate sought to shape the transitions in the Arab world.

The Silent Revolution

The Silent Revolution
Author: May Seikaly
Publisher: Gerlach Press
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2014
Genre: Arab Spring, 2010-.
ISBN: 9783940924346

How immune is the Gulf region to the changes that have engulfed the Arab world since 2011? This volume responds to this question by examining the impact of the Arab Spring on Gulf regimes and societies and contributing to debates on political participation and citizenship; sectarianism, gender and identity formation; as well as the role of the media in exposing the paradoxes of the Gulf system and its relationship to international political actors.

The Small Gulf States

The Small Gulf States
Author: Khalid S. Almezaini
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 307
Release: 2016-12-08
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 131721434X

Small states are often believed to have been resigned to the margins of international politics. However, the recent increase in the number of small states has increased their influence and forced the international community to incorporate some of them into the global governance system. This is particularly evident in the Middle East where small Gulf states have played an important role in the changing dynamics of the region in the last decade. The Small Gulf States analyses the evolution of these states’ foreign and security policies since the Arab Spring. With particular focus on Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, it explores how these states have been successful in not only guaranteeing their survival, but also in increasing their influence in the region. It then discusses the security dilemmas small states face, and suggests a multitude of foreign and security policy options, ranging from autonomy to influence, in order to deal with this. The book also looks at the influence of regional and international actors on the policies of these countries. It concludes with a discussion of the peculiarities and contributions of the Gulf states for the study of small states’ foreign and security policies in general. Providing a comprehensive and up-to-date analysis of the unique foreign and security policies of the states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) before and after the Arab Spring, this book will be a valuable resource for students and scholars of Middle East studies, foreign policy and international relations.

The Arab Spring

The Arab Spring
Author: Jason Brownlee
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 353
Release: 2015
Genre: History
ISBN: 0199660069

Several years after the Arab Spring began, democracy remains elusive in the Middle East. While Tunisia has made progress towards democracy, other countries that overthrew their rulers - Egypt, Yemen, and Libya - remain in authoritarianism and instability. This volume provides a foundational exploration of the Arab Spring's successes and failures.

The United Arab Emirates

The United Arab Emirates
Author: Kristian Coates Ulrichsen
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 270
Release: 2016-12-01
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1317603095

Led by Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the UAE has become deeply embedded in the contemporary system of international power, politics, and policy-making. Only an independent state since 1971, the seven emirates that constitute the UAE represent not only the most successful Arab federal experiment but also the most durable. However, the 2008 financial crisis and its aftermath underscored the continuing imbalance between Abu Dhabi and Dubai and the five northern emirates. Meanwhile, the post-2011 security crackdown revealed the acute sensitivity of officials in Abu Dhabi to social inequalities and economic disparities across the federation. The United Arab Emirates: Power, Politics, and Policymaking charts the various processes of state formation and political and economic development that have enabled the UAE to emerge as a significant regional power and major player in the post Arab Spring reordering of Middle East and North African Politics, as well as the closest partner of the US in military and security affairs in the region. It also explores the seamier underside of that growth in terms of the condition of migrant workers, recent interventions in Libya and Yemen, and, latterly, one of the highest rates of political prisoners per capita in the world. The book concludes with a discussion of the likely policy challenges that the UAE will face in coming years, especially as it moves towards its fiftieth anniversary in 2021. Providing a comprehensive and accessible assessment of the UAE, this book will be a vital resource for students and scholars of International Relations and Middle East Studies, as well as non-specialists with an interest in the United Arab Emirates and its global position.

The Arab Awakening

The Arab Awakening
Author: Kenneth M. Pollack
Publisher: Brookings Institution Press
Total Pages: 401
Release: 2011
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0815722265

"Analyzes key aspects of the 2011 Mideast turmoil, such as Arab public opinion; socioeconomic and demographic conditions; the role of social media; influence of Islamists; the impact of political changes on the Arab-Israeli peace process; and ramifications for the United States and the rest of the world. Also provides country-by-country analysis of Middle East political evolution"--Provided by publisher.

China and the Middle East

China and the Middle East
Author: Muhamad Olimat
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 236
Release: 2013
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1857436318

This manuscript examines relations between China and the Middle East in historical context. It highlights some of the most important events that characterize the ties between China and the Middle East, and examines their relationship in key areas that include energy, trade, arms sales, culture and politics. The centre of China's relations with Israel is arms sales and advanced technology, while the core of Sino-Saudi relations is oil. Iran and China are tied with deep historical, civilizational, cultural and political relations, but China's current interests in Iran centre on oil. Relations between China and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) centre on trade. The UAE serve as a primary hub for Chinese business corporations not only in the Gulf or the wider Middle East, but also in Africa and the world. China's relations with Algeria have been based on political co-ordination since the early days of the Algerian War of Independence and the early days of the People's Republic of China. China provided Algeria with political, diplomatic and military support to accomplish its national liberation from France. Since then, their partnership has developed. Finally, the book develops a tridimensional approach in which China's ties with Middle Eastern countries are viewed as an outcome of interaction between three actors in each situation. The book reaches the conclusion that China's national interests in the Middle East are only increasing, and it is anticipated that Sino-Middle Eastern relations and strategic partnerships will be enhanced in the near future, provided that China is not perceived as undermining the Arab Spring. Key Features Offers an in-depth analysis of Chinese-Middle Eastern relations Assists students and scholars in understanding the uniqueness of the Chinese model of engagement in the Middle East Explains why most Middle Easterners prefer China's engagement to Western engagement Explores the future of Sino-Middle Eastern relations