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Tuesday, 21 November 2023

Rethinking the Eastern Mediterranean in a volatile world

On 21 November, the European Studies Centre (ESC), in collaboration with the Southeast European Studies Centre at Oxford (SEESOX), held a seminar on the opportunities and challenges of cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean region.

The region has gained increasing importance as the European Union (EU) seeks to meet its energy demands following the near-total ban on the import of Russian gas after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Simultaneously, the region's instability, coupled with a multitude of global crises—including climate change, trade wars, US-China competition, and inflation—makes the Eastern Mediterranean an integral part of the geopolitical landscape, influencing both regional and global power dynamics.

The seminar, held on 21 November, is part of a broader effort by ESC/SEESOX to address these issues through a special project, which is expected to launch in March 2024. The speakers included Alexander Clarkson (King’s College London), Costandinos Filis (American College of Greece), Manal Shahabi (St. Antony’s College, Oxford), and Galip Dalay (St. Antony’s College, Oxford). ESC Director Othon Anastasakis chaired the seminar.