Forum: Great Power Competition and the Middle East | Redrawing Trade Routes and Networks

Boğaziçi University in Istanbul will host a joint international conference on 16-17 June 2025 under the title “Great Power Competition and the Middle East: Redrawing Trade Routes and Networks”. The event is being organised by the university’s Department of International Relations in collaboration with Al Jazeera Centre for Studies, the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA), the Center for Turkish Studies at Shanghai University and PLUS Institute (the Austrian Institute for International Research and Development).

The two-day conference aims to offer an in-depth reading of current global developments and analyse the dimensions of international competition in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), especially in the context of reshaping global trade routes, regional and international connectivity networks, and emerging economic and political alliances. It also seeks to foster interdisciplinary academic dialogue among experts, researchers and decision-makers from around the world to better understand the nature of the challenges facing the region and to offer strategic insights into how to navigate the consequences of great power rivalries for the future of the Middle East.

The conference will feature an opening session with remarks from representatives of the organising institutions, followed by six specialised panel discussions and a final roundtable session for open debate, allowing participants to exchange perspectives and ideas on the topics addressed.

The themes to be discussed include emerging norms and alliances within the new global trade structure; the prospects for competition over trade routes and networks; the impact of 7 October 2023 on international norms; the consequences of ongoing U.S.-China rivalry for the MENA region; and the influence of shifting global power dynamics on the hierarchy of international organisations, alliances and US unipolar dominance

Another central question the conference will explore is whether major initiatives, such as the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), the EU’s Global Gateway and the Development Road project, will deepen fragmentation in the MENA region or present real opportunities to enhance regional cooperation and peace.

The conference will also examine the strategic ambitions of major competing powers – namely the United States, China and Russia – in the Middle East and North Africa, and whether the region can develop its own trade corridors or launch regional economic integration initiatives independent of external pressures.

Additional key questions to be addressed include: Can the Development Road project offer a viable or secure alternative to Russian energy for Europe? What are the roles of India and China in global supply chains, and how have these roles evolved in recent years? What are the strategic implications of India-China rivalry for supply chains and trade routes in the Middle East?

This conference is set to take place amid a complex international and regional landscape, marked by profound shifts in geopolitical balances, intensifying great power competition, and the growing strategic importance of the Middle East in global economic, trade and security equations. These conditions make it imperative to raise fundamental questions about the region’s future, develop effective strategies to navigate emerging dynamics, and explore opportunities for regional cooperation in light of the new global roadmap of initiatives.

The organisers emphasise that the conference will serve as a vital academic platform bringing together scholars, researchers and policymakers, aiming to deliver actionable, practical outcomes. The goal is to deepen global understanding of issues related to the Middle East, identify opportunities for regional cooperation and integration, and offer strategic perspectives on managing the long-term impacts of great power competition on the region’s political and economic landscape.

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Event flow:

◻ DAY 1 | 16 June 2025

◻ Opening Remarks | 09.00 - 10.00

Speakers:

◽ Mehmet Naci İnci, Rector, Boğaziçi University

◽ Mohammed Mukhtar Al Khalil Director, PhD, Al Jazeera Centre for Studies

◽ Murat Yeşiltaş, Professor & Director of Foreign Policy Studies, SETA Foundation, Member of Presidential Committee on Security and Foreign Policy, Türkiye

◽ WU Xueming, Professor & Vice President, Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences

◽ Muhammed Ali Uçar, Chairman, Board of Trustees, PLUS Institute

◽ Selçuk Aydın, Associate Dean, Faculty of Economics and Administrative Science

◻ Session 1 | 10:30 - 12:00

⚪ Great Power Competition and Imperial Legacies: Questioning the Position of the Middle East

Moderator: 

◽ İpek Coşkun Armağan, General Coordinator, PhD, Institute Social, Member of Presidential Committe on Social and Youth Policies, Türkiye

Speakers:

◽ Ersel Aydınlı, Professor, Department of International Relations, Bilkent University

◽ Guo Chang-gang, Professor, Institute of Global Studies, Shanghai University

◽ Sami Al-Arian, Professor & General Coordinator, Center for Islam and Global Affairs, Istanbul Zaim University

◽ H.A. Hellyer ,Senior Associate Fellow in Middle East Affairs, Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies (RUSI), Senior Fellow in Geopolitics, Center for American Progress

◽ Özden Zeynep Oktav, Professor & Head of International Relations Department at Faculty of Political Science, İstanbul Medeniyet University, Member of Presidential Committee on Security and Foreign Policy, Türkiye

◻ Lunch Break | 13:30 - 15:00

◻ Session 2 | 15:30 - 17:00

⚪ Trade Routes (BRI, INSTC, and IMEC), Supply Chains and Strategic Competition: India, Russia and China in Global Trade

Moderator: 

◽ Arafat Shoukri, Senior Researcher, PhD, Al Jazeera Centre for Studies

Speakers:

◽ Wang Jinhui, Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute of Global Studies, Shanghai University

◽ Gürol Baba, Professor, Department Of International Relations, Social Sciences University of Ankara

◽ XIE Yiqing, Associate Professor, Institute of China Studies, SASS

◽ Musab Iqbal, Lecturer,PhD, School of Media and Communication, University of Westminster

◽ Mehmet Özkan, Professor, International Relations at Joint War Institute, Turkish National Defence University

◻ Session 3 | 17:30 - 19:00

⚪ Europe at the Crossroads: Strategic Autonomy or Reinforcing the Western Alliance under the US Hegemony?

Moderator: 

◽ Şeyma Ekiz, Assistant Professor, Political Science and International Relations, Boğaziçi University

Speakers:

◽ Talha Köse, President of the Turkish National Intelligence Academy

◽ Uli Bruckner, EU Jean Monnet Professor at Stanford in Berlin, Academic Director, Center for Cultural Diplomacy Studies (CCDS)

◽ Hugh Lovatt, Senior Policy Fellow with the Middle East and North Africa Programme, European Council on Foreign Relations

◽ Akif Emre Öktem, Professor of International Law, Galatarasay University

◻ Reception and Networking Session | 19:00 - 20:00

◻ DAY 2 | 17 June 2025

◻ Session 4 | 9:30 - 11:00

⚪ Great Power Rivalry in MENA: Regional Stakes and Strategic Alignments

Moderator: 

◽ Selçuk Aydın, Assistant Professor, Political Science and International Relations, Boğaziçi University

Speakers:

◽ Zeinab Ghasemi Tari, Professor & Head of the Institute for North American and European Studies at University of Tehran.

◽ Amur Gadzhiev, Director, Centre for Modern Türkish Studies, PhD & Senior Researcher, the Institute of Oriental Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences

◽ Yang Chen, Director, PhD, Center for Turkish Studies, Shanghai University

◽ Akif Kireççi, Dean & Professor, Social Sciences University of Ankara, Member of Presidential Committee on Security and Foreign Policy, Türkiye

◽ Juline Beaujouan, Senior Research Fellow, Peace and Conflict Resolution Evidence Platform (PeaceRep), University of Edinburgh

◻ Session 5 | 11:30 - 13:00

⚪ From Fragmentation to Cooperation? Regional Initiatives vs Global Strategies in the Middle East

Moderator: 

◽ Du Donghui, Assistant Professor, Center for Turkish Studies, Shanghai University

Speakers:

◽ Murat Yeşiltaş, Professor & Director of Foreign Policy Studies, SETA Foundation, Member of Presidential Committee on Security and Foreign Policy, Türkiye

◽ Mahjoob Zweiri, Professor, Contemporary Middle East Politics, Qatar University

◽ Temel Kotil, Professor of Aeronautical Engineer, CEO & Board Member, Çalık Energy

◽ Mohamed Ihsan, Senior Professor, School of Security Studies, KCL & Senior Visiting Professor, Jackson School of Global Affairs at Yale University

◽ Maria Gloria Polimeno, Research Fellow, PhD, SOAS & Lecturer in International Relations and Politics at the University of Cambridge

◻ Lunch Break | 13:30 - 15:00

◻ Session 6 | 15:30 - 17:00

⚪ Where the World is Heading: Changing Conflicts, Norms, and Hierarchies on the International Stage

Moderator: 

◽ Hasan Basri Bülbül, Assistant Professor of International Law, Boğaziçi University

Speakers:

◽ Mohammed Mukhtar Al Khalil, Director, PhD, Al Jazeera Centre for Studies

◽ Sukanya Podder, Professor, School of Security Studies, KCL & Defence Academy of the UK

◽ Selver B. Şahin, Professor, Political Science and International Relations, Boğaziçi University

◽ Ramzy Ezzeldine Ramzy, “Ambassador (ret) Former Senior Undersecretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Egypt Deputy Special Envoy for Syria, United Nations”

◽ Hassan Ahmadian, Assistant Professor of Middle East and North Africa Studies, University of Tehran Senior Research Fellow, Middle East Scientific and Strategic Studies

◻ Roundtable Discussion with Young Scholars | 17:30 - 18:30

⚪ Strategic Crossroads: The Middle East and the Emerging New World Order

Discussant TBA, Speakers:

◽ Hasan Altın, PhD, College of Liberal Arts-Global Studies-Shanghai University, People’s Republic of China, Gaziantep University

◽ Oğuz Şahbaz, PhD, Diplomatic Academy of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russian Federation, Recep Tayyip Erdogan University

◽ Fatma Yıldız, PhD, Cape Town University, South Africa, Hacettepe University

◽ Yücel Bulut, PhD, Noida International University, India, Karadeniz Technical University

◽ Murat Döleker, PhD, Moscow State University,  Ministry of National Education of Türkiye