MENA Talks

In this episode of the MENA Talks Podcast, host Shada Islam and guest Prof. Carlos Lopes dissect Africa's future, emphasizing the challenge of conveying its manufacturing potential to Europe. They probe EU-Africa relations, questioning the effectiveness of defining a "relationship of equals" and the influence of colonialism. The discussion shifts to China's role, evaluating con...

As COP28 rapidly approaches, the United Arab Emirates, as the conference's presiding nation, is gearing up to host a pivotal global conversation about our shared future. Dubai Abulhoul, an accomplished Author, Rhodes Scholar, and founder of the Fiker Institute, along with her role as an Advisory Committee Member at COP28, joins Cinzia Bianco for a frank conversation. Their exchange will bring...

 La question du racisme en Europe a gagné en visibilité ces dernières années, notamment depuis l'assassinat de George Floyd aux États-Unis et l'internationalisation du mouvement Black Lives Matter . Elle-même victime d'une altercation raciste avec la police belge en 2020, la députée Européenne Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana échange avec notre analyste Yasmine Akrimi sur son engagement...

In this new MENA Talks podcast episode, Dr. Cinzia Bianco, BIC Senior Expert on EU-Gulf Relations, engages in a thought-provoking conversation with Dr. Tobias Borck, Senior Research Fellow at RUSI. Both experts provide a comprehensive status check on the EU-Gulf strategic partnership, shedding light on progress and limitations in key sectors like security, energy, climate, and humanitarian aid. Dr...

Wilson Fache is travelling to Ukraine to capture the ground realities of the conflict-ridden country. He records the destruction caused in and around the city of Bakhmut. Back in Brussels, Wilson meets Lisa Musiol, the International Crisis Group's Head of EU Affairs, as they both talk about the nature of the European Union's economic, military, and political support towards Ukraine. Gues...

C'est quoi être féministe aujourd'hui? Pourquoi tant de femmes sont-elles réticentes à le devenir, surtout dans le Sud global? C'est quoi le féminisme « mainstream »? Et pourquoi pose-t-il problème? À l'occasion de la journée internationale des droits des femmes le 8 mars, notre chercheuse Yasmine Akrimi et sa confrère, la journaliste féministe tunisienne Sarah Ben Ali, ont par...

In this episode, BIC's Political Analyst, Ben Lowings is joined by Alessandro Mattiato, Coordinator for EU-NATO Relations at the European Commission to get an EU perspective on the challenges and opportunities facing the EU-NATO partnership, especially in the context of the Russian war in Ukraine.  How can we interpret the most recent joint declaration signed in January 2023 between the EU an...

Cinq ans après la fin de la guerre contre le groupe Etat islamique, plus d’un million d’Irakiens qui avaient été déplacés par le conflit n’ont pas encore pu rentrer chez eux. Parmi eux, des milliers de familles dites « affiliées » à l’organisation terroriste et qui sont aujourd’hui considérées comme des parias. Wilson Fache, consultant pour le BIC, s’est rendu à Bagdad, Mossoul et Erbil pour tente...

The BIC's Political Analyst, Ben Lowings, is joined by Dr. Daniel Fiott, Head of the Defence and Statecraft Programme at the Brussels School of Governance and Non-Resident Fellow at the Real Elcano Institute, to discuss the current state of European foreign policy including an evaluation of the effectiveness of some of its tools, such as those involved using the CSDP framework, as well as its...

With Shada Islam and Rafia Zakaria On this very special episode of the MENA Talks, the BIC’s Senior Commentator on Geopolitics, Shada Islam, is joined by best seller author Rafia Zakaria to have a frank conversation about current developments in Iran. The death of Maisa Amini provoked fury across Iran and the world, causing unprecedented levels of popular discontent against the Iranian regime’s br...

 While Europe’s energy crisis fuels fears of a harsh winter for millions of European residents, much discussions are revolving around diversifying the EU’s energy suppliers and reducing European countries’ dependency on Russian hydrocarbons. Yet, solutions can also be found within Europe with the implementation of demand side measures to reduce energy consumption. Senior associate at the Institute...

C’était le 15 août 2021. La chute de Kaboul aux mains des talibans et le départ précipité des forces occidentales avaient provoqué l’avènement d’un nouvel « émirat islamique » après vingt ans de guerre et d’occupation. Aujourd’hui, l’Afghanistan est un pays au bord du gouffre, miné par une crise économique et humanitaire qui a mis la population à genoux. Wilson Fache, consultant au BIC, s'est...

The BIC's Political Analyst, Ben Lowings, is joined by William Davison, Senior Analyst for Ethiopia at the International Crisis Group, to discuss the role of ethnicity in Ethiopia and how historical divisions have been weaponised to contribute to the level of violence in Tigray, where the nature of such atrocities has amounted to reports of ethnic cleansing.  What are some of the structural f...

Dévoilé en septembre 2020 et toujours en discussion, le nouveau pacte de Migration et d’Asile de l’Union Européenne se veut “plus solidaire, plus juste et raisonnable”, selon la présidente de la Commission. Loin d'amorcer un changement de paradigme dans la politique migratoire du bloc, la députée européenne du groupe S&D, Marie Arena, nous parle des manquements qu'elle perçoit dans l...

In this first episode of the second season of the MENA Talks, our host Shada Islam is joined by Dr. Sven Biscop, Director ‘Europe in the World’ at the Egmont Institute and Professor Yeo Lay Hwee, Director at the EU-Asia Centre in Singapore, to discuss current geopolitical dynamics in a multipolar world system, or as framed during the discussions, the coming of a “great geopolitical re-ordering”. I...

In the framework of the 2022 AU-EU summit, the podcast explores the intersecting phenomena of migration and climate change in Africa, climate resilience avenues for African cities, and implications for the EU-AU partnership. Guest: Aimée-Noël Mbiyozo, Senior Research Consultant at the Institute for Security Studies Interviewed by Yasmine Akrimi,  North Africa Research Analyst at BIC

In this episode of The MENA Talks, Ben Lowings speaks with Dr. Asil Sidahmed, Former Strategic Advisor to Sudan’s Federal Minister of Health about the events preceding, and the fallout from the October 2021 Sudanese coup. What was the experience of working in government where suspicion ruled between its military and civilian leaders? How has service delivery, including crucial medicinal provision,...

Quatre mois après le retour au pouvoir des Talibans, l’Afghanistan serait au seuil de l'une des pires crises humanitaires au monde. Selon les Nations Unies, plus d’un Afghan sur deux pourrait bientôt se retrouver en situation d'insécurité alimentaire aiguë. L’hiver arrive, l’économie est en berne et les aides internationales ont été gelées. Wilson Fache, consultant au BIC, s’est rendu da...

The podcast discusses mixed migration in Tunisia and the larger North African region, exploring its incentives, trends, and the humanitarian programs in place to assist migrants and refugees. The BIC's North Africa Research Analyst Yasmine Akrimi is joined by Mr. Yadh Bousselmi, Danish Refugee Council Tunisia representative and regional program advisor , to highlight the necessity to move bey...

Following from the 76th United Nations General Assembly held in New York, USA in September, the BIC's Political Analyst Ben Lowings is joined by Professor Alanna O'Malley , Chair of United Nations Studies in Peace and Justice at Leiden University and The Hague University of Applied Sciences, to discuss some of the main issues framing the debates of multilateral diplomacy. How can the UN...

"The Afghan conflict has never been totally, or even primarily rooted in domestic factors”. For this special episode of the MENA Talks Podcast, our host Shada Islam , BIC’s Senior Commentator on Geopolitics, is joined by Jawed Ludin , President of Heart of Asia Society and former Deputy Foreign Minister of Afghanistan, to discuss regional and geopolitical implications of the current crisis in...

This  episode of the MENA Talks podcast explores some of the security concerns that national and international aid workers in Yemen are confronted with on a daily basis. Our host Elisa Chery is joined by Jean-Nicolas Beuze, the Yemen Representative for the UNHCR, who gives an overview to some of the logistical, legal, and cultural hurdles aid workers face to remain fully operational throughout the...

Y a-t-il réellement une volonté d'intersectionnaliser les lutte féministes en Tunisie? Comment expliquer l'invisibilisation des femmes noires au sein du mouvement féministe tunisien? Dans ce podcast, Yasmine Akrimi discute de la place de la question raciale, et donc de l'antiracisme, au sein des mouvements féministes tunisiens pré et post 2011 avec la militante antiraciste Saadia Mo...

On the current status of Nile diplomacy, the increase in bilateral tensions, and the growing challenge of water scarcity in the face of global climate change, the BIC's Political Analyst, Ben Lowings, is joined by Mirette Mabrouk , Senior Fellow and Director of the Egypt program at the Middle East Institute, to discuss the latest regarding Ethiopia's controversial Grand Ethiopian Renaiss...

Hosted by Elisa Chery, BIC Middle East Analyst - Interview with  Amb. Marc Otte, BIC President. This episode of the MENA Talks will explore the upcoming elections in the Middle East, particularly within Iran and Syria. These elections have geopolitical consequences and could alter the power dynamics in the region. What could new leadership in Iran mean for actors like the European Union and the Un...