Gulf International Forum's Majlis

About Gulf International Forum's Majlis

Our podcast is another medium in which we continue to serve our mission of building awareness and contributing to the accumulation of knowledge on the Gulf region. The podcast show features expert analysis on the Gulf region’s social, political, and economic issues. The countries of focus are Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. The show is available on several smartphone podcast apps; Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Podcast App, iTunes, ThePodcastSource, Libsyn and GIF's website https://gulfif.org/media/podcast/

Publisher

Gulf International Forum

Category

news

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

25 May 2020

Latest episode

22 Jul 2024

Latest episodes

76 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   22 Jul 2024

   Book Talk with Dr. Cinzia Bianco "The Gulf Monarchies After the Arab Spring"

   Featured Speakers: Dr. Cinzia Bianco and Professor Luigi Narbone. About the Book: The post-Arab Spring collapse of decades-old regimes inaugurated a decade of re-shaping for the geopolitical order in the Middle East and North Africa region. A multipolar disorder ensued, solidified by the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Amid general bewilderment, the small monarchies of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) spent the decade between 2011 and 2022 trying to re-shape regional equilibria as protagonists. This book applies an original theoretical framework to unpack the threat perceptions and strategic calculus driving the behaviour of these new impactful regional players. Six chapters look at the six GCC monarchies individually. The author challenges commonly held narratives and goes beyond attention-grabbing headlines and thus provides reading keys to the past, present and future of policy-making in the Gulf monarchies, middle powers destined to play an oversized role in the new multipolar world.

2. 

   22 Jul 2024

   Book Talk with Dr. Dania Thafer "Creative Insecurity: Institutional Inertia and Youth Potential in the Gulf"

   Featured Speakers: Dr. Dania Thafer and Dr. Kristian Coates Ulrichsen. About the Book The Middle East is experiencing the world’s most prominent youth bulge. Yet many MENA economies’ institutional designs, both formal and informal, favor the power of business elites, systematically discriminating against young people joining the workforce or opening businesses, and thus limiting their ability to contribute to innovation. Large youth populations can be a boon or a curse: nurtured and integrated, they can jumpstart stratospheric growth; but if alienated and confined, they can drain a society politically and economically. The Gulf Cooperation Council countries are no exception to this perilous dilemma. This book explores the problem through a new concept, “creative insecurity”: a state’s subjection to an institutional ecosystem that is suppressing opportunities for innovation–to the extent that it is causing economic and political vulnerabilities, which in turn threaten national security. Creative insecurity threatens the longevity of many states today. In this original, incisive study, Dania Thafer argues that GCC member-states should make it a national security imperative to cash in their demographic dividend, by averting the deleterious effects of ill-disposed elite politics. Investing in an innovation ecosystem that harnesses the talent of the youth majority will be crucial for the GCC’s successful transition to the post-oil era.

3. 

   22 Jul 2024

   Post-Raisi Iran: Succession, Domestic Politics, and Regional Implications

   Featured Speakers: Ambassador Patrick Theros, Holly Dagres, Dr. Abdolrasool Divsallar, and Dr. Hamidreza Azizi. Event Synopsis On May 19th, a tragic helicopter crash near the Azerbaijan border resulted in the deaths of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, and several other officials. In response to this devastating event, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei announced that First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber would assume the role of interim president. According to Iran’s constitution, a new presidential election must be held within 50 days, with candidates subject to vetting by the Guardian Council—a stringent body known for disqualifying even prominent conservative and moderate figures. This suggests that significant shifts in Iranian policy are unlikely. This incident occurs amid increasing domestic unrest and international pressures. Iran is currently facing numerous political, social, and economic crises, alongside global scrutiny over its contentious nuclear program and its deepening military cooperation with Russia in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Since taking office, Raisi had enforced stricter laws, led a severe crackdown on anti-government protests, and adopted a hardline stance in nuclear negotiations with global powers. Furthermore, the long-standing covert conflict between Iran and Israel has recently escalated into open exchanges of drone and missile fire, underscoring the region’s volatility. Among moderates, conservatives, and hardliners, who are the most likely candidates to succeed Raisi, and what factors will influence their chances? With Raisi being a potential successor to Supreme Leader Khamenei, how does his death alter the dynamics of the supreme leader’s succession? Should we anticipate any changes in Iran’s foreign relations, particularly with the West and in its support for Russia in the Ukraine conflict? Given that the presidential election will occur only weeks after the parliamentary elections, what impact might this have on Iran’s societal dynamics, especially among the youth and women who protested Raisi’s policies two years ago? What are the potential implications for Iran’s internal stability in light of the upcoming presidential election?

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Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

3 ratings

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Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.