EUNPACK panel at MERI 2018 Annual Convention

Responsive statebuilding to prevent violent extremism – the role of local, national and international stakeholders

Even if Daesh has been forced to retreat to become a more locally-based insurgency, the Middle East is still facing a substantial problem of violent extremism. This is closely related to the huge challenge of statebuilding in the region; namely how to build responsible government that not only controls territory, but also gain legitimacy in their respective populations through establishing peaceful and tolerant societies that generates development and employment. In this panel, we will discuss the role of local, national and international stakeholders, with a focus on the challenges to build responsible states in the Middle East. The panel asks what should be the role for civil society, including religious actors and external stakeholders as the European Union in the fight against violent extremism and in support of more responsive states. 

Chair: Professor Dlawer Ala’Aldeen (MERI)

Panellists

Ambassador Ramon Blecua (EU Delegation Baghdad

Senior Researcher Steven Blockmans (Centre for European Policy Studies)

Research Professor Morten Bøås (Norwegian Institute of International Affairs)

Senior Researcher Tine Gade (Norwegian Institute of International Affairs)

Kamaran Palani Mohammed (MERI)