Azerbaijan land bridge will fortify Russia-Iran axis

2017 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Military Power ◽  
Land Bridge ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The North ◽  
High Security

Subject The Russia-Azerbaijan-Iran railway. Significance Russia has pledged funding to complete a rail link between Iran and Azerbaijan, the last segment of the North-South Trade Corridor (NSTC) connecting Russia to the Gulf and India. Azerbaijan hopes to benefit as the 'middle link', while Iran and Russia have greater economic and political aspirations. Impacts The route gives Russia another instrument with which to project financial and military power in the Middle East. Maritime routes via Suez will face competition for freight. The rail route will need high security given the risks of attack, for example in Dagestan, and of arms, drugs and terrorist travel.

Blowback may eventually restrain Gulf interventionism

2018 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Military Power ◽  
Horn Of Africa ◽  
Regional Politics ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Government Interventions ◽  
The Past ◽  
Bilateral Relations ◽  
Gulf States ◽  
Global Powers

Significance The wealthier Gulf states have become increasingly active in nearby countries over the past decade. They have intervened significantly across the Middle East and Horn of Africa, using a mixture of economic, diplomatic and military power, sometimes seeking to fill gaps left by Washington’s partial withdrawal from the region. Impacts Companies risk getting caught out if their operations span the Gulf and include a country that falls out of favour in regional politics. Bilateral relations bolstered by government interventions may encourage new investments. Regional interventions by Gulf states risk harming relationships with major global powers.

Russia will watch returning jihadists closely

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Civil Rights ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
North Caucasus ◽  
The Caucasus ◽  
Group Threat ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The North ◽  
Russian Soil ◽  
State Group

Subject Islamic State group threat to Russia. Significance Russia is using arrests and violence to curb the growth of the Islamic State group (ISG), which has expanded in the North Caucasus at the expense of established domestic jihadist groups such as the Caucasus Emirate. The outflow of militants to the Middle East has contributed to relative calm in the North Caucasus, but as combatants return, some may be intent on violence. Russia's stated intention of defeating ISG on the ground in Syria could encourage reprisal attacks on Russian soil. Impacts Putin will cite domestic terrorist threats as justification for clampdowns on civil rights. The focus on security will be used to control dissent among the Crimean Tatars, who are unhappy with their new status as Russian citizens. Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov will be even more indispensable as Moscow's most powerful ally in the North Caucasus.

Syria's Kurds may be forced to align with Damascus

2018 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Middle East ◽  
The United States ◽  
Content Type ◽  
North East ◽  
The North

Significance This follows President Donald Trump's surprise decision to withdraw troops from Syria, where Washington has been supporting the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in fighting IS. Previously, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had threatened to invade SDF-held areas in the north-east. Impacts US credibility as a partner in the region will be substantially diminished. Russian and Iranian influence in Syria and the wider Middle East will grow. If Washington disengages from Syria at diplomatic level, a Russian-led initiative to form a constitutional committee will likely succeed. The United States will assist Turkey in moving against the PKK in Iraq.

US and Russian policies and strategies in the Middle East: Iraq and Syria as a model

2019 ◽  
pp. 220
Author(s):  
Esraa Aladdin Noori ◽  
Nasser Zain AlAbidine Ahmed
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
East Asia ◽  
Balance Of Power ◽  
Western World ◽  
International Conflicts ◽  
The South ◽  
The West ◽  
The North ◽  
East Region ◽  
Middle East Region

The Russian-American relations have undergone many stages of conflict and competition over cooperation that have left their mark on the international balance of power in the Middle East. The Iraqi and Syrian crises are a detailed development in the Middle East region. The Middle East region has allowed some regional and international conflicts to intensify, with the expansion of the geopolitical circle, which, if applied strategically to the Middle East region, covers the area between Afghanistan and East Asia, From the north to the Maghreb to the west and to the Sudan and the Greater Sahara to the south, its strategic importance will seem clear. It is the main lifeline of the Western world.

Middle East luxury retail sector – opportunities or uncertainties in the future?

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-39
Author(s):  
Roger Moser ◽  
Gopalakrishnan Narayanamurthy
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Multinational Corporations ◽  
International Business ◽  
Market Entry ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Retail Sector ◽  
Senior Executive ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Future

Subject area The subject area is international business and global operations. Study level/applicability The study includes BSc, MSc and MBA students and management trainees who are interested in learning how an industry can be assessed to make a decision on market entry/expansion. Even senior management teams could be targeted in executive education programs, as this case provides a detailed procedure and methodology that is also used by companies (multinational corporations and small- and medium-sized enterprises) to develop strategies on corporate and functional levels. Case overview A group of five senior executive teams of different Swiss luxury and lifestyle companies wanted to enter the Middle East market. To figure out the optimal market entry and operating strategies, the senior executive team approached the Head of the Swiss Business Hub Middle East of Switzerland Global Enterprise, Thomas Meier, in December 2012. Although being marked with great potential and an over-proportional growth, the Middle Eastern luxury market contained impediments that international firms had to take into consideration. Therefore, Thomas had to analyze the future outlook for this segment of the Middle East retail sector to develop potential strategies for the five different Swiss luxury and lifestyle companies to potentially operate successfully in the Middle East luxury and lifestyle market. Expected learning outcomes The study identifies barriers and operations challenges especially for Swiss and other foreign luxury and lifestyle retailers in the Middle East, understands the future (2017) institutional environment of the luxury and lifestyle retail sector in the Middle East and applies the institutions-resources matrix in the context of a Swiss company to evaluate the uncertainties prevailing in the Middle East luxury and lifestyle retail sector. It helps in turning insights about future developments in an industry (segment) into consequences for the corporate and functional strategies of a company. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or e-mail [email protected] to request teaching notes. Subject code CSS 5: International Business.

Bankarization in the first European cities with an equal number of Muslim and Christian inhabitants

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 554-580
Author(s):  
Miguel Ángel Pérez-Castro ◽  
Miguel Ángel Montero-Alonso ◽  
Akram Abderrahman-Azaar
Keyword(s):  
North Coast ◽  
Content Type ◽  
European Cities ◽  
The North ◽  
Financial Depth ◽  
Financial Framework ◽  
European Banks ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Different Cultures ◽  
Near Future

Purpose This paper aims to analyze the situation of the financial system in the Spanish-governed cities of Melilla and Ceuta, Christian and Muslim cities located on the north coast of Africa, and compared it with the mean bankarization level in the rest of Spain in 2000-2015. Design/methodology/approach Although different calculation methods have been proposed, most authors agree that the bankarization level of a country or a territory reflects the development of the society as a whole and has a positive correlation with economic growth. The indicators of financial depth proposed by these researchers are not only the ratio between variables such as loans, deposits, etc., but also the ratios of these variables to the population and the gross domestic product (GDP) of the country or territory. Findings The results obtained revealed that there are differences between these two North African Spanish cities. Furthermore, the financing gap between the mean bankarization levels of these cities and those of mainland Spain was found to be even larger than most of the other economic indicators (GDP per capita and the unemployment rate). Practical implications The authors are convinced that the manuscript is a contribution of great interest for serving pilot experience in cities wishing to offer a development of traditional banking and Islamic banking. The paper should be of interest to readers in the areas of finance systems and commercial banks where two different cultures coexist. Originality/value This is the first research study on the financial framework of European cities whose populations have an approximately equal percentage of Christians and Muslims. The data reflected the existence of savings and loan methods parallel to conventional banking. The conclusion was that in the near future, it would be advisable for European banks to take into account the cultural customs and religious practices of potential Muslim clients.

Foreign aid’s impact on domestic business climates

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 365-382 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nabamita Dutta ◽  
Russell S. Sobel ◽  
Sanjukta Roy
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Foreign Aid ◽  
Political Institutions ◽  
North American ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Political Elite ◽  
Economic Institutions ◽  
Business Climate ◽  
Government Regulations ◽  
Content Type

Purpose Existing literature has expressed significant pessimism about the outcomes of foreign aid received by developing nations. Foreign aid can lead to negative outcomes by generating greater rent-seeking opportunities and creating aid dependence. While aid’s negative impact has been explored in the context of growth, political institutions, and economic institutions, the literature has not investigated the effect of aid on business climate of recipient nations. The purpose of this paper is to explore foreign aid’s impact on government regulations on the business climate in Sub-Saharan African (SSA) and Middle East and North American countries. Design/methodology/approach The authors consider a panel of 64 countries over six years. Since foreign aid is most likely to be endogenous, as identified in most studies, the identification strategy follows two methodologies – system GMM estimator, that creates its own instruments via moment generating conditions and instrumental variable approach that relies on an external instrument. Findings The authors find that aid worsens the business climate by increasing government restrictions. Foreign aid provides the recipient governments and the political elite resources to strengthen their power and reinforce predatory policies that are harmful for the business climate. The results further show that in the presence of long-lasting and sustainable democratic regimes, the negative impact of foreign aid on business climate mitigates to a certain extent. Originality/value While aid’s negative impact has been explored in the context of growth, political institutions, and economic institutions, the literature has not investigated the effect of aid on business climate of recipient nations. The authors explore the impact of foreign aid on government regulations on the business climate in SSA and Middle East and North American countries.

scholarly journals First record of the North American cryptic invaderFerrissia fragilis(Tryon, 1863) (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Planorbidae) in the Middle East

2014 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Federico Marrone ◽  
Murtada D. Naser ◽  
Gh. Yasser Amaal ◽  
Francesco Sacco ◽  
Marco Arculeo
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
North American ◽  
First Record ◽  
The North

The storm after the storm: the long-term lingering impacts of hurricanes on schools

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cassandra R. Davis ◽  
Sarah R. Cannon ◽  
Sarah C. Fuller
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Instructional Time ◽  
Emotional Needs ◽  
Social Emotional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The North ◽  
State Education ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify and describe the long-term impacts of hurricanes on schools and discuss approaches to improving recovery efforts.Design/methodology/approachInterviews with 20 school districts in Texas and North Carolina after Hurricanes Harvey (2017) and Matthew (2016). In total, 115 interviews were conducted with teachers, principals, district superintendents and representatives from state education agencies. Interview questions focused on the impact of storms and strategies for recovery.FindingsThe authors uncovered three long-term impacts of hurricanes on schools: (1) constrained instructional time, (2) increased social-emotional needs and (3) the need to support educators.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper focuses on two storms, in two states, in two successive years. Data collection occurred in Texas, one academic year after the storm. As compared to the North Carolina, data collection occurred almost two academic years after the storm.Practical implicationsThis paper illuminates strategies for stakeholders to implement and expedite hurricane recovery through; (1) updating curricula plans, (2) providing long-term counselors and (3) supporting educators in and out of school.Originality/valueTo date, very few studies have explored the ways in which schools face long-term impacts following a disaster. This paper provides insight to the challenges that prolong the impacts of disasters and impede recovery in schools. With hurricanes and related disasters continuing to affect schooling communities, more research is needed to identify the best ways to support schools, months to years after an event.

Energy transition demand will elevate aluminium prices

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Middle East ◽  
High Power ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Green Energy ◽  
Power Markets ◽  
Energy Sources ◽  
Content Type

Significance Aluminium smelters are being hampered by high power prices and shortages amid the switch towards green energy sources. China has been forced to start importing aluminium at record levels to tackle domestic shortages. Impacts The green energy transition will strain power markets, increasing the challenge of producing energy-intensive aluminium. Supply will gradually diversify as outputs stagnates in China but looks set to rise in Argentina, Brazil, the Middle East and Russia. Consumers and governments in importing nations will increase aluminium recovery and recycling to cut pressure on the supply chain.

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