German Institute for Global and Area Studies | Leibniz-Institut für Globale und Regionale Studien

German Institute for Global and Area Studies | Leibniz-Institut für Globale und Regionale Studien

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Explaining Middle-Power Engagement in External Regions: A Comparison of Iranian, Saudi, and Turkish Sub-Saharan Africa Policies

  • By means of a comparative historical analysis of Iranian, Saudi-Arabian, and Turkish engagement in Africa following the continent’s decolonization processes and running up until 2020, this project seeks to make sense of middle-power engagement in external regions. First, the project will identify the periods of shifting IST engagement in Africa. Second, it will analyze the reasons why, and the conditions under which, IST have stepped up—or reduced—their foreign policy efforts in Africa. Third, it will develop mid-range generalizations on middle-power engagement in external regions.
    DFG, 2022-2025

    Team

    Mira Demirdirek

    Doctoral Researcher

    Hamid Talebian

    Doctoral Researcher

    Logo der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)
    Logo der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)

    Forschungsfragen

    By means of a comparative historical analysis of IST engagement in sub-Saharan Africa following the continent’s decolonization processes after World War II and running up until the end of 2020, this project seeks to make sense of middle-power engagement in external regions. It focuses on three objectives to this end: First, the project will identify—and define—the periods of shifting IST engagement in Africa in the chosen era. Second, it will analyze the reasons why, and the conditions under which, IST have stepped up—or reduced—their foreign policy efforts in Africa. Third and finally, it will develop mid-range generalizations on middle-power engagement in external regions, ones which can subsequently be applied to cases elsewhere.

    Beitrag zu internationaler Forschung

    Why do middle powers engage in external regions? Although regions have become defining elements of international politics, and despite middle powers now being considered key actors in today’s multipolar international system, extant theoretical studies on middle powers offer only limited and inconsistent answers as to why they embark on comprehensive strategic foreign policies toward a given external region or, contrariwise, choose to significantly downgrade their foreign policy endeavors. There is thus a notable research gap on a topic that has gained greatly in importance of late, and one that comes with significant real-world implications.

    Forschungsdesign und Methoden

    To achieve these objectives, the research team will first analyze quantitative and qualitative data to gauge the values for the three indicators selected to detect the periods of shifting IST engagement in Africa: diplomatic activities; endeavors in selected policy areas, including security, economic, cultural, and aid relations; and, security strategies related to Africa. Based on the so-established periodization, we will then analyze the reasons and conditions for any increased IST engagement. We will do so by focusing on two periods of heightened engagement in one African subregion for each IST state, including three years preceding and three years succeeding the respective time periods. Using the method of structured, focused comparison in combination with process tracing, we will contrast the periods of heightened IST engagement within and between cases. Importantly, this comparative analysis will be conducted along, and geared toward assessing, three sets of assumptions derived from the theoretical literature, and conveniently grouped into three categories: domestic, systemic, and status factors driving middle-power engagement. Toward the end of the project, these assumptions—whose explanatory power will have been tested and revised over the course of this exploratory study—will be further systemized and made applicable to other cases elsewhere.

    Projektbezogene Publikationen

    Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies | 07.2023

    Beyond the Soft–Hard Power Binary: Resource Control in Turkey’s Foreign Policy Towards Sub-Saharan Africa

    Using the case of Turkey’s Africa policy under the AKP, this article challenges this reading and its underlying conceptual assumptions.

    Dr. Jens Heibach

    Research Fellow

    British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies | 03.2023

    Iran’s Foreign Policy Making: Consensus Building or Power Struggle?

    This article seeks to identify ways in which the foreign policy power hierarchy inside the Islamic Republic of Iran can be explained. It uses high-level diplomatic meetings as observable evidence in a novel analytical framework to identify the scope of competition and hierarchies in foreign policy decision-making processes. Results reveal that diplomatic activities of key foreign policy decision makers did not noticeably diverge.

    Dr. Sara Bazoobandi

    Dr. Jens Heibach

    Dr. Thomas Richter

    GIGA Focus Global | 6/2022

    Bolstering the Bromances: Turkey’s and Iran’s Tightening Ties with Africa

    Der Krieg gegen die Ukraine eröffnet aufstrebenden Akteuren in Afrika die Möglichkeit, ihre Aktivitäten auf dem Kontinent zu verstärken. Dieser Fokus fragt, wie die sich wandelnden globalen Dynamiken, es dem Iran und der Türkei ermöglichen, ihre Beziehungen mit Afrika zu vertiefen.

    Mira Demirdirek

    Doctoral Researcher

    Hamid Talebian

    Doctoral Researcher

    GIGA Focus Nahost | 5/2022

    From New to Normal: Two Years after the Abraham Accords

    Als Israel im Jahr 2020 die Abraham-Abkommen unterzeichnete, waren die Reaktionen kontrovers. Zwei Jahre danach hat sich die Normalisierungsdynamik stärker entwickelt als erwartet aber unterscheidet sich in Ausmaß und Umfang. Faktoren wie z.B. der ungelöste Nahostkonflikt setzen weiteren Fortschritten jedoch Grenzen.

    Petra Dachtler

    Diplomat in Residence and Fellow

    International Politics | 05.2021

    Public Diplomacy and Regional Leadership Struggles: The Case of Saudi Arabia

    In light of Saudi Arabia's recent foreign policy, this article examines the valorization of public diplomacy in regional leadership struggles. The author argues that emerging leaders often resort to a mix of coercion and persuasion.

    Dr. Jens Heibach

    Research Fellow

    Weitere Inhalte zum Thema

    Offene Sektionstagung der Sektion "Internationale Beziehungen" der DVPW

    Konferenz | 14.06.2023 - 16.06.2023

    Offene Sektionstagung der Sektion "Internationale Beziehungen" der DVPW

    Offene Sektionstagung der Sektion "Internationale Beziehungen" der DVPW, Zeppelin Universität, Friedrichshafen Organisation: Sektion "Internationale Beziehungen", DVPW Dr. Jens Heibach (Panelbeitragende:r)

    The panel addresses the panoply of dominant strategies employed by middle powers from the Global South to gain influence with actors, or groups of actors, in external regions and hence a key development in contemporary international relations.

    Dr. Jens Heibach

    Research Fellow

    Die Außenpolitik der Türkei

    Kooperationsveranstaltung | 03.05.2023 - 05.07.2023

    Die Außenpolitik der Türkei

    100 Jahre Republik Türkei: Eine aktuelle Bilanz, Asien-Afrika-Institut, Raum 221, Edmund-Siemers-Allee 1, Flügel Ost, Hamburg Organisation: TürkeiEuropaZentrum, Universität Hamburg, German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA), Landeszentrale für politische Bildung Hamburg Mira Demirdirek (Vortragende:r)

    Mira Demirdirek

    Doctoral Researcher

    Strengthening the Bromance: the War against Ukraine as an Opportunity for Turkey and Iran in Africa

    Konferenz | 16.03.2023 - 17.03.2023

    Strengthening the Bromance: the War against Ukraine as an Opportunity for Turkey and Iran in Africa

    Humanitarian Narratives and Interventions from the Contemporary Middle East, CEI, Lisbon Organisation: Centro de Estudos Internacionais Mira Demirdirek (Vortragende:r), Hamid Talebian (Vortragende:r)

    Mira Demirdirek

    Doctoral Researcher

    Hamid Talebian

    Doctoral Researcher

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