About the Book
The wider region of the Eastern Mediterranean is in transition. What is being evinced is a situation of continuous volatility, centering on developments such as the `Arab Spring,’ the Greek sovereign debt crisis, Islamic terrorism, the continuation of deadlock over the Cypriot and Palestinian Issues, significant energy finds in the Levantine Basin, concerns over nuclear proliferation and, more recently, the Syrian Civil War. At a systemic level, the move towards a regional multipolar reality has also contributed to volatility by creating a crescendo of antagonisms between all the major international actors who continuously strive for more influence, power and prestige. This collective project by leading experts represents a unique combination of International Theory and International Politics analysis that deals exclusively with the wider Eastern Mediterranean. It scrutinizes in a multidimensional manner the current geostrategic and geopolitical conditions that include the latest domestic socio-political events, as well as the active involvement of the Great Powers in the region. This book should be of interest to academics, decision-makers and a general reading public focusing on a significant and influential region in flux.
Table of Contents:
Contents: Foreword; War, peace and stability in the era of multipolarity: what lies at the end of the systemic rainbow?, Spyridon N. Litsas; Structural changes and emerging patterns of strategic behavior in the Eastern Mediterranean during the transition from bipolarity to multipolarity, Panayiotis Ifestos; Russian foreign policy in the Eastern Mediterranean since 1991, Pavel Shlykov; US foreign policy in the Eastern Mediterranean: the limits of smart power, Akis Kalaitzidis; The dragon’s rise in the Great Sea: China’s strategic interests in the Levant and the Eastern Mediterranean, Christina Lin; Penelope unraveling: the Obama administration’s policy in the Eastern Mediterranean, Nikolaos Zahariadis; `Smart’ leadership in a small state: the case of Cyprus, Ilias I. Kouskouvelis; Structure over agency: the Arab uprising and the regional struggle for power, Raymond Hinnebusch; Reorienting Turkish foreign policy: successes, failures, limitations, Ilter Turan; Vernacular security in the Eastern Mediterranean after the Arab Spring: the cases of Egypt and Jordan, Stacey Gutkowski; Twitter vs. Penguens on TV: #GeziParkProtests, social media use, and the Generation Y in Turkey, Aslı Tunç; Beyond hegemony: Cyprus, energy securitization and the emergence of new regional security complexes, Constantinos Adamides and Odysseas Christou; A most vicious weapon: rape, war and civil strife in the Arab world, Amikam Nachmani; Reasserting normalcy in Iran’s foreign policy realm: continuities, challenges and opportunities, Ghoncheh Tazmini; The call of the sea: strategic opportunities and challenges for Israel in the Eastern Mediterranean, Aharon Klieman; The Israeli-Greek rapprochement: stability and cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean, Aristotle Tziampiris; Index.
About the Author :
Spyridon N. Litsas is Assistant Professor in Theory of International Relations at the department of International and European Studies of the University of Macedonia, Greece. He specializes on War Theory, Middle East politics, Turkish politics, Islamic Fundamentalism and Strategic Theory. Dr. Litsas holds a Ph.D from Durham University, UK.
Aristotle Tziampiris is Associate Professor of International Relations and Director of the Center for International and European Affairs at the Department of International and European Studies of the University of Piraeus, Greece. He is currently (2013-2014) Visiting Fellow at New York University (The Remarque Institute) and was Visiting Scholar at Columbia University (The Harriman Institute) during 2009. Dr Tziampiris specializes on South-Eastern Europe, the Eastern Mediterranean and Greek Foreign Policy. He holds a Ph.D from the London School of Economics and Political Science, UK.
Review :
'A hugely important collection of essays that provides an abundance of hitherto untapped materials and sheds important fresh light on the spreading turbulence in one of the world's foremost geostrategic areas.' Efraim Karsh, King's College London, UK and Bar-Ilan University, Israel 'This is a deliciously fresh and, at the same time, systematic and thought-provoking look at the changing role of the Eastern Mediterranean in international politics. It brings together a group of distinguished experts and does what the title promises and much more. It will be of interest to students, scholars and practitioners alike.' Kostas A. Lavdas, Tufts University, USA
`A hugely important collection of essays that provides an abundance of hitherto untapped materials and sheds important fresh light on the spreading turbulence in one of the world’s foremost geostrategic areas.’
Efraim Karsh, King’s College London, UK and Bar-Ilan University, Israel
`This is a deliciously fresh and, at the same time, systematic and thought-provoking look at the changing role of the Eastern Mediterranean in international politics. It brings together a group of distinguished experts and does what the title promises and much more. It will be of interest to students, scholars and practitioners alike.’
Kostas A. Lavdas, Tufts University, USA
