On February 8 at 11:00 a.m. (Moscow time) at the Valdai Club there was a presentation of the new report: “Gaza. Yemen. Epicentres of Pain. Feelings, Myths and Memory in the Middle East” on the eve of the 13th Middle East Conference.
The year 2023 was full of events that influenced both the countries of the Middle East and extra-regional actors. Many of the events seemed to be a continuation of previously established positive trends, including the normalisation of relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran, the renewal of Syria’s membership in the Arab League, and the decision to include Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the UAE in the BRICS.
However, by the end of the year, the situation in the region had changed dramatically: the old Palestinian-Israeli conflict returned to the agenda, and tensions arose in the Red Sea, which affected global shipping and led to US and British strikes on Yemen. According to the authors of the report, the current situation indicates a gradual transformation of the Middle East, the possible division of a single regional space and the emergence of new zones where the interests of many players intersect.
What is the significance of historical memory of the Gazans and all Palestinians? How does a symbolic politics relate to the logic of the Houthi movement? Is the connection between Ansarullah and Palestine an accident or a system-forming characteristic of regional relations? What is the role of non-state actors in the Middle East?
Speakers:
Mustafa Barghouti, Secretary General and Co-Founder of the Palestinian National Initiative
Vitaly Naumkin, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, scientific director of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Sergey Serebrov, senior research fellow at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Moderator:
Working languages: Russian, English.