DOHA: A lecture held by the Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q) recently, entitled “managing the Saudi-Iranian rivalry” offered possible solutions to the political tensions between the two countries.
Dr Ibrahim Fraihat, a Senior Fellow in foreign policy at the Brookings Institution’s Doha Center delivered the lecture, which was part of GU-Q’s monthly dialogue series. The series is sponsored by the GU-Q’s research institute, the Center for International and Regional Studies (CIRS).
“Both sides have security fears,” said Dr Fraihat, adding that the issue “goes well beyond the notion of a sectarian rivalry.” Dr Fraihat is also an expert in international conflict resolution and an adjunct assistant professor at GU-Q.
“Don’t be led or misled by the obvious positions of the two countries, because you will only see conflict. However, the positions are actually much more related,” he said. “They are both responding to security needs, as well as economic and environmental needs. Engage the security and business and define other areas of shared needs,” he urged.
Building on these mutual needs, he laid out a conflict resolution management scenario that included mediation, dialogue, confidence building measures, credible peace plans, zones of peace, developing areas of interdependence, and eventually, restoring the balance of power. In particular, he stressed the need to go beyond top tier mediation to a grassroots level of engagement. “Ask yourself: how many Iranian students are in Qatar or other GCC countries, and how many Arabs are in Iran? How many shared exchange programmes exist? How much do the two parties know about each other? To what extent are they engaged in research, media, and so forth, to build a stronger foundation and chance to reduce tension?” he asked.
“We must create these links and invest on other levels with much better chance to support future collaboration,” he added.
Ibrahim Fraihat previously taught international conflict resolution at George Washington University and George Mason University. A widely published author, Dr Fraihat’s research focuses on conflict resolution in the Arab world, with a particular emphasis on conflict management and mediation, transitions, national reconciliation, national dialogue, institutional reform, and post-conflict reconstruction.
The Peninsula
