A New Chapter in Middle East Foreign Policy?

Wed. April 29th, 2020
YouTube @CarnegieMENA

As world powers struggle to slow the spread of COVID-19, countries across the Middle East are mulling over this pandemic's impact on the regional power balance and foreign policy. The status-quo has shifted considerably. Oil prices and the OPEC Plus agreement have collapsed, Idlib has seen a temporary halt in fighting, the conflicts in Libya and Yemen have escalated even further, labor markets are shifting dramatically, and capital flight is a looming threat.

China has expanded its presence across the region, from Oman in the Gulf to Egypt and Algeria in North Africa. How will the current U.S.-Chinese rivalry play out in the region after the pandemic? Will Russia’s looming economic crisis have an effect on the Kremlin’s Middle East policy? Given the pandemic's impact on Europe's economies, can the European Union fund recovery efforts in the Middle East?

The Carnegie Middle East Center held a live virtual discussion on Wednesday, April 29 on the Carnegie Middle East Center’s YouTube page.

SPEAKERS

Rosa Balfour is the director of Carnegie Europe.

Evan Feigenbaum is vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment.

Dmitri Trenin is the director of the Carnegie Moscow Center.

CHAIR

Maha Yahya is the director of the Carnegie Middle East Center.

EVENT TIMINGS

Washington (EDT): 10:30-11:30 a.m.

Brussels (CEST): 4:30-5:30 p.m.

Beirut, Moscow (EEST): 5:30-6:30 p.m.

New Delhi (IST): 8:00-9:00 p.m.

Beijing (CST): 10:30-11:30 p.m.

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
event speakers

Rosa Balfour

Director, Carnegie Europe

Rosa Balfour is director of Carnegie Europe. Her fields of expertise include European politics, institutions, and foreign and security policy. Her current research focuses on the relationship between domestic politics and Europe’s global role. Previously, Balfour was a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States. She was also director of the Europe in the World program at the European Policy Centre in Brussels and has worked as a researcher in Rome and London. She holds a PhD in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Evan A. Feigenbaum

Vice President for Studies, Acting Director, Carnegie China

Evan A. Feigenbaum is vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where he oversees its work in Washington, Beijing, New Delhi, and Singapore on a dynamic region encompassing both East Asia and South Asia. He served twice as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and advised two Secretaries of State and a former Treasury Secretary on Asia.

Dmitri Trenin

Director, Carnegie Moscow Center

Trenin was director of the Carnegie Moscow Center from 2008 to early 2022.

Maha Yahya

Director, Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center

Yahya is director of the Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center, where her research focuses on citizenship, pluralism, and social justice in the aftermath of the Arab uprisings.