ABSTRACT

At this time of considerable political turmoil in the Middle East, there is a pressing need to explore alternative frameworks for regional security. The book discusses the Helsinki Process as one potentially relevant historical model to learn from.

The Helsinki Process began in a divided Europe in the early 1970s and, over 40 years, achieved major successes in promoting cooperation between the Warsaw Pact and NATO member states on social, human rights, security, and political issues. In this volume, established Middle East experts, former diplomats, and emerging scholars assess the regional realities from a broad range of perspectives and, with the current momentum for reform across the Middle East, chart a path towards a comprehensive mechanism that could promote long-term regional security.

Providing a gamut of views on regional threat perception and suggesting ways forward for regional peace, this book is essential reading for students and scholars with an interest in Politics, the Middle East and Conflict Studies.

part |33 pages

The Helsinki Process

chapter |19 pages

Cautious optimism

The Helsinki Process as a model for negotiations in the Middle East

chapter |12 pages

A zone in the Middle East

Confidence-building measures and the European experience

part |95 pages

Perspectives from the region and outside

chapter |38 pages

The Helsinki Process and the Middle East

The viability of cooperative security frameworks for a region in flux

chapter |8 pages

Weapons of Mass Destruction-Free Zone in the Middle East

A political view from Riyadh

chapter |17 pages

Lessons learned

The Turkish role in arms control and regional security talks in the Middle East 1

part |66 pages

The Middle East today

chapter |21 pages

The Helsinki Process in the Middle East

Promoting security, development, democracy, and peace

chapter |14 pages

The Middle East and the Helsinki Process

Unfulfilled aspiration … so far

part |31 pages

Possible futures

chapter |18 pages

A Helsinki Process for the Middle East?

New discourse, new opportunities

chapter |11 pages

Conclusion

Charting a course inspired by the Helsinki experience