Publication

This policy paper discusses the aims of British foreign policy in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). The author argues that British policy in the MENA to date has been Gulf-centred, overly bilateral, and blinkered by involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Arab Spring presents a chance to reconcile the conflict of interests between commercial diplomacy and support for democracy. In order to avoid "strategic shrinkage", bilateral relations must harness the collective weight of EU member states to push for reform.