The MENA Region in the Global Order: Actors, Contentious Issues and Integration Dynamics

The paper aims at revealing the current nature of the interactions between the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and the global order. The authors argue that this relationship can be divided into three separate issues: global actors, which influence (and are influenced by) regional developments, primarily the USA, China, Russia and the European Union; contentious issues (such as borders and mobility, trans-nationalization, norms of proliferation and energy market tendencies) which effect international and transnational relations; and global integration dynamics (in the political, economic and technological spheres) which determine the extent to which the states and societies of the MENA region participate in and shape the process of globalization. The paper introduces a number of research questions to guide further research in the different fields.