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    Opinion articles

    The importance of opening Turkey’s Ovaköy border crossing with Iraq

    Introduction Land border-crossings represent a very important economic asset for neighbouring countries because of the income generated through cross-border commercial trade, as well as, providing a tourist corridor for the transit of visitors and tourists between countries. Border-crossings are also an important security gateway for the country. The greater the number...

    Transformations in German Middle East Policy: The View from Iraq

    Abstract The challenges faced by Germany’s recent experience in Iraq reflect the complex and dynamic nature of engaging in conflict zones in the Middle East. An overlap between humanitarian concerns and national security interests formed the basis of Germany’s initial decision to deploy soldiers to northern Iraq, but once there,...

    Iraq’s place in Canada’s Middle East Strategy

    By Ali Ziad al Ali, researcher specialising in international and strategic affairs. At the beginning of 2016, Canada announced, in the words of its Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, a strategy called the "Middle East Strategy", which focused on ways of enhancing Canadian interests in the region, in general, and in...

    The Hidden Threats to Iraq’s National Security

    By Ali Ziad al-Ali, researcher specialising in international and strategic affairs. In general, arbitrary or unsystematic threats to national security are a direct menace to the intrinsic values and underpinnings of any society. Iraq’s national security faces an unprecedented number of visible threats that form a direct menace to the...

    The Role Of Resources, Economics And Energy In The Increasingly Fierce Rivalry Between Iran And Saudi Arabia

    Summary Neoliberal thinking provides a broad-spectrum interpretation of the role of resources in regional rivalries, and issues such as identity, energy and water resources are considered legitimate reasons for rivalry in international politics. Strategists argue that in the years following the Cold War, there was good reason for new regional...

    Iraq and Japan – A Common Strategic Vision

    By Ali Ziad al Ali, Researcher Specialising in International and Strategic Affairs Iraq’s geopolitical position represents a strategic imperative and a reality which compels the superpowers to maintain relations with it. Japan recognised the importance of this vital position in terms of energy and geopolitics. Iraq represents a strategic opportunity...

    Combating Corruption … Using Data Extraction Techniques in e-Government

    The term "Big Data" is a broad definition that covers all data relating to institutions and individuals. Data extraction is one way of accessing information. Data extraction techniques reveal the information behind the data and how to interpret it. In other words, it is defined as a process used to...

    Incentivising the private sector to develop domestic tourism in Iraq

      Domestic tourism - historically - is the primary form of tourism that persists to this today and represents the bulk of global tourism activity. Economists at the World Tourism Organisation estimate that domestic tourism at the global level represents two-thirds of total tourism. Domestic or local tourism is a tourist...

    ‘Functioning Federalism’ in Iraq: A Critical Perspective

      Iraq has struggled with the concept of federalism ever since it was enshrined in the 2005 Constitution. It is beyond the scope of this paper to discuss how the authors of the Constitution envisioned a federal Iraq, or to put it more accurately, how competing visions led to the...

    The Waste Recycling Industry in Iraq – A Proposal to Incentivise Small Businesses

      Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) represent the economic back-bone of developed countries because these entities invest their human resources in a variety of economic activities. This investment leads to the building of strong economies without the necessity for citizens to depend on governments and public-sector employment. On studying the...