Few studies of Middle East wars go beyond a narrative of events and most tend to impose on this subject the rigid scheme of superpower competition. The Gulf War of 1991, however, challenges this view of the Middle East as an extension of the global conflict. The failure of the accord of both superpowers to avoid war even once regional superpower competition in the Middle East had ceased must give rise to the question: Do regional conflicts have their own dynamic? Working from this assumption, the book examines local-regional constraints of Middle East conflict and how, through escalation and the involvement of extra-regional powers, such conflicts acquire an international dimension. The theory of a regional subsystem is employed as a framework for conceptualising this interplay between regional and international factors in Tibi's examination of the Middle East wars in the period 1967-91. Tibi also provides an outlook into the future of conflict in the Middle East in the aftermath of the most recent Gulf War.

"The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic marks the most significant, singular global disruption since World War II, with health, economic, political, and security implications that will ripple for years to come." -Global Trends 2040 (2021) Global Trends 2040-A More Contested World (2021), released by the US National Intelligence Council, is the latest report in its series of reports starting in 1997 about megatrends and the world's future. This report, strongly influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, paints a bleak picture of the future and describes a contested, fragmented and turbulent world. It specifically discusses the four main trends that will shape tomorrow's world: - Demographics-by 2040, 1.4 billion people will be added mostly in Africa and South Asia. - Economics-increased government debt and concentrated economic power will escalate problems for the poor and middleclass. - Climate-a hotter world will increase water, food, and health insecurity. - Technology-the emergence of new technologies could both solve and cause problems for human life. Students of trends, policymakers, entrepreneurs, academics, journalists and anyone eager for a glimpse into the next decades, will find this report, with colored graphs, essential reading.

This book examines the international politics of the Red Sea region from the Cold War to the present. It argues that the Red Sea region demonstrates well the characteristics of a sub-regional system, with increasing economic and social interdependence, greater regional integration, with the stronger regional powers – Egypt, Israel and Saudi Arabia – seeking to establish their influence over the sub-region, and with all states forming regional alliances to protect their interests and to fend off possible encroachment of others.

While Americans are generally aware of China's ambitions as a global economic and military superpower, few understand just how deeply and assertively that country has already sought to influence American society. As the authors of this volume write, it is time for a wake-up call. In documenting the extent of Beijing's expanding influence operations inside the United States, they aim to raise awareness of China's efforts to penetrate and sway a range of American institutions: state and local governments, academic institutions, think tanks, media, and businesses. And they highlight other aspects of the propagandistic “discourse war” waged by the Chinese government and Communist Party leaders that are less expected and more alarming, such as their view of Chinese Americans as members of a worldwide Chinese diaspora that owes undefined allegiance to the so-called Motherland.Featuring ideas and policy proposals from leading China specialists, China's Influence and American Interests argues that a successful future relationship requires a rebalancing toward greater transparency, reciprocity, and fairness. Throughout, the authors also strongly state the importance of avoiding casting aspersions on Chinese and on Chinese Americans, who constitute a vital portion of American society. But if the United States is to fare well in this increasingly adversarial relationship with China, Americans must have a far better sense of that country's ambitions and methods than they do now.

Since the late 1970s the Red Sea has become extremely important both in international politics and in regional affairs. This new situation has come about because of the growing Soviet presence in the Horn of Africa and Saudi efforts to have the Red Sea treated as an 'Arab Lake'. This book examines the development of the Red Sea as a significant problem in superpower relations and assesses its relative importance in the context of other conflicts in the Gulf and elsewhere in the Third World. The book analyses Soviet interests in the Red Sea area and examines its record in seeking to intervene in the domestic politics of the region. The book also discusses the degree of regional stability in the Red Sea both in terms of inter-Arab relations and Afro-Arab regulations. This issue is considered against the background of the security of the Nile Valley. In conclusion the book argues that Saudi Arabia's regional policies aimed at enhancing internal and external security have proved destabilizing and in a wav even adventurous. By fermenting Somali national ism Saudi Arabia hoped to push the Soviets out of the Red Sea. In fact this policy reinforced the Soviet presence in the Horn of Africa. Similarly Saudi Arabia's regular interference in the domestic affairs of North Yemen may well prove extremely counter-productive. The book argues that the West's preoccupation with the region would lessen considerably if Saudi Arabia and Egypt would promote policies of co-operation, rather than destabilization at both inter-Arab and Afro-Arab levels.