Publications tags - Turkey - Sana'a Center For Strategic Studies

Analysis October 16, 2024 07:23 MIN Quarterly: July-September 2024 Egypt Maneuvers in the Horn of Africa By Maher Abu al-Majd Since October 2023, the Middle East has witnessed a series of geopolitical developments, which Cairo has perceived as a direct threat to its national security. These include: 1) the Israeli war on Gaza; 2) Houthi escalation in the Red Sea and a subsequent decline in Suez Canal revenue; 3) Ethiopia's quest for a seaport and plans to establish a naval base on the coast of Somaliland; and 4) the crisis in Libya and the potential for renewed conflict. This rapid succession of events has shattered Egypt's longstanding pillars of foreign policy, which for four decades were built on the principles of good neighborliness, non-intervention, and investing in mediation and diplomacy. In response, Cairo has undertaken a series of proactive measures… Continue reading

Yemen Review section July 15, 2024 05:05 MIN Quarterly: April-June 2024 Turkey and the Red Sea Crisis By Maher Abu al-Majd Turkey’s meaningful engagement with Africa began during the rule of the Justice and Development Party in 2008. That year, Turkey hosted the first Turkey-Africa Cooperation Summit. Ankara’s quest for new horizons in its political and economic relations came during a period of notable economic growth, and over the past 15 years, it has successfully carved out a substantial presence in Africa, a continent ripe with economic prospects. Turkey’s particular focus has been on the Horn of Africa countries, where economic initiatives have an added geostrategic dimension. A key element here is Turkey’s military presence in Somalia, where it established its first military base, Turksom, in 2017. The same year, the ambassador to Turkey from Djibouti signaled a willingness to host… Continue reading

Analysis July 15, 2024 06:13 MIN Quarterly: April-June 2024 Abdelmajeed al-Zindani: The Demise of Political Islam’s Leading Figure in Yemen By Tawfeek Al-Ganad With a long flaming red beard, distinctive square face, unconventional white turban, and a voice that was immediately recognizable – Abdelmajeed al-Zindani was perhaps the most famous political-religious figure in Yemen of the past 50 years, a controversial persona who stirred endless debate, even after his death on April 22 in Istanbul at the age of 82. Al-Zindani was born in the Al-Sha’ar district of Ibb governorate in 1942 and learned to read and write in its traditional kuttab school. He moved to Aden to continue his education and subsequently to Cairo, where he started the enigmatic journey of his political life between Yemen, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, and, finally, Turkey. In the 1950s, Al-Zindani was affiliated with the pan-Arab… Continue reading

Analysis December 14, 2021 14:07 MIN Turkey’s Policy Shifts Toward Yemen’s Civil War, a Local and Regional Perspective By Omar Munassar Turkey might be expected to be involved in the Yemen war for a number of reasons: the Ottoman legacy, regional influence aspirations, the ruling party’s ideological ties with the Yemeni Islah party and early backing for the Saudi-led military campaign in Yemen in 2015. Yet today, it appears to be absent from the Yemeni equation. The reasons for this are debated from numerous perspectives within and outside of Turkey. Turks attribute their country’s non-interventionist policy in Yemen to domestic and regional complications, including the country’s economic crisis, Gulf Arab nations’ three-year feud with Qatar and Turkey’s foreign policy priorities in Syria and the eastern Mediterranean, which led Turkey to step back from the coalition and reconsider its relations with Saudi… Continue reading