In the Shadow of the „Spring”

In the Shadow of the „Spring”

Global Relations Department | Foreign and Security Policy

As part of the ‘Foreign and Security Policy First Hand’ event series, an online panel discussion entitled In the Shadow of the ‘Spring’ was organised by the Antall József Knowledge Centre on 16 March 2021.

The invited experts were Prof. Dr Erzsébet N. Rózsa, professor at the University of Public Service – Ludovika, senior researcher at the Centre for Economic and Regional Studies Institute of World Economics of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and Dr László Gulyás, historian, assistant professor at the Faculty of Law and Political Science of the University of Szeged. This time the main topic of the event was the so-called ‘Arab Spring’ which erupted ten years ago and swept through North Africa and the Middle East (MENA) region. The invited experts had a lively, high-profile discussion on the causes of the phenomenon, the reactions of the regional and international powers and the consequences of the revolution wave. The conversation started with a question: the participants were asked to speak about their personal experiences and feelings during the Arab Spring. The first half of the conversation focused on the backgrounds, geopolitical and economic consequences of the Arab Spring.

Because the event was organised on the 10th anniversary of the outbreak of the ‘Syrian spring’, we paid special attention to this Arab country. According to Erzsébet N. Rózsa Bassar al-Assad was able to stay in power due to the religious and ethnic diversity of Syria, because the minorities rightly feared a potential reprisal after Assad’s fall. László Gulyás focused on the foreign relations of Syria during the Cold War, especially the Arab country’s conflicts with the United States and its good relations with the Eastern Bloc. In the second half of the conversation, the attitude of the regional and great powers towards the Arab Spring was on the table. Dr N. Rózsa analysed the reactions of Iran and Turkey, while Dr Gulyás spoke about the Chinese Middle East-policy during and after the Arab Spring.

At the end of the event, our speakers discussed that what will be the short- and long-term consequences of the Arab Spring or what lessons can be learnt from these events. According to László Gulyás, the Arab Spring is some kind of a cyclical process, which will probably repeat itself in the near future – and the West must not force the MENA countries to adopt democracy or serious changes. Erzsébet N. Rózsa thinks that the roots of the Arab Spring had not completely disappeared, the question of legitimacy is still unanswered and of course we should not forget the challenges which were caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

The event was realised with the support of the Prime Minister’s Office of Hungary and the Bethlen Gábor Foundation.

Global Relations Department