After several years of sharp increase, European exports to Iran declined significantly from mid-2006 until late 2007. French government support for the United States placed French firms under extreme financial pressure from Washington. While 2008 showed an unexpected recovery of European exports to Iran, France seems to have lost market its share there, as Germany-in spite of its stated firmness on sanctions-maintained its high level of trade with Iran. With the Iranian market virtually cleared of competitors, will a “grand bargain” initiated by Barack Obama present American companies with easy access to this market?
German-Kuwaiti Relations: From Their Beginnings to the Reunification of Germany
This article discusses the development of German-Kuwaiti relations from the late eighteenth century to the reunification of Germany.
Art in Israel, 1948-2008: A Partial Panorama
This article follows a number of artistic movements and events anchored in Israeli ideology, politics, and content. It offers a selective, partial panorama of art in Israel from 1948 through the first decade of the twenty-first century. The article presents a sequence of synchronic historical pictures defined by the specific context of each decade, in which each work is representative of an idea or artistic concept in local Israeli artistic discourse.
Where Is Turkey Going and Why?: A Panel Discussion
On January 22, 2009, the Global Research in International Affairs (GLORIA) Center, the U.S. Department of State’s International Information Programs in Washington D.C., and the Public Affairs Office at the U.S. Embassy in Israel jointly held an international videoconference seminar focusing on recent changes in Turkish politics and foreign policy. The discussion has been updated and edited.
Women in Algeria Today and the Debate over Family Law
This article argues that family law is at the heart of the contentious discourse concerning the role and legal status of women in Algeria today.
Demography in the Middle East: Population Growth Slowing, Women’s Situation Unresolved
Fifty years of rapid population growth in the Middle East is coming to an end. The Middle East is experiencing the same “demographic transition” to slow population growth that other areas have gone through. The immediate reason for the slower population growth is a fall in the number of children born to the average woman over her lifespan, known as the “total fertility rate” (TFR). While contraception availability and urbanization played a part in the declining TFR, the main factor was the empowerment of women. In recent decades, Middle Eastern women have made great progress at gaining more equal access to education, but that has not yet translated into more access to employment outside the home. The demographic transition through which the Middle East is passing presents an opportunity that is also a challenge. The opportunity is several decades in which the economy faces a relatively light burden in caring for children and the elderly. However, the Middle East can only take advantage of this opportunity if it can create enough jobs for the young people born during the years of rapid population growth. If jobs are not created in sufficient numbers to absorb those joining the labor market, the resulting rise in unemployment could have a considerable political impact. Meanwhile, within a few decades, the Middle East is expected to experience a rapid increase in the elderly population, which by 2050 will exceed the number of children in many of the region’s countries.