October, 17th 2022

The Arab Council foundation held a dialogue workshop on international and regional geopolitical transformations and their impact on the reality and future of democracy in the Arab world, in Istanbul on October 17th, 2022, in the presence of elite politicians, thinkers, intellectuals and researchers from various Arab countries.

The workshop was held with the aim of discussing and understanding the nature of international and regional transformations, and analyzing the role of international and regional actors and their local allies in determining the reality and future of democracy in the Arab world and the repercussions of these interventions on these countries and on the Arab regional system.

The workshop was divided into two sessions. The first session dealt with the nature of international transformations, the weight of external factors and hegemony, in addition to strategies for directing, influencing, and reshaping the paths of change and democratic transition adopted by the hegemonic powers. The second session also dealt with an analysis of the regional geopolitical scene, the role of regional countries in supporting or thwarting democratic transition, the weight of intra-regional disputes and their role in facilitating external interventions through these conflicts and using them to enhance hegemony.

In his intervention in the workshop, the former Tunisian President and President of the Arab Council Foundation, Dr. Moncef Marzouki, said: There is a major issue of opinion for the Arab mind today, which is rethinking. With the accelerating changes today. Marzouki added: The world is running at an extreme speed, we do not know whether it is running towards the abyss or towards an oasis of peace, and we must keep pace with this speed, and not remain in a vicious circle, in outdated ideas that have become part of the problem and not part of the solution.

The Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Vice President of the Arab Council Foundation, Ms. Tawakkol Karman, said in her intervention: The workshop is very important in preparation for a major Arab conference to discuss the future of democracy in the Arab world, and to know what we must do in order to protect emerging democracies in the Arab world. Or in establishing future democracies and fighting dictatorships.

The workshop participants discussed the factors that contributed to the failure or support of the democratic path in the Arab region, and the tools used to direct the democratic path in the Arab world, in addition to how they can benefit from regional changes and political transformations in supporting the democratic path in the Arab region.