CMEC podcast: Recent Episodes
CMEC
Co, chair of The Women's Business Committee at the Federation and Damascus Chamber of Commerce, and Nazek Jandali, Vice Chairwoman of Jandali Group
Does the recently approved, illegal, E1 Settlement Development in the Occupied West Bank make peace impossible? And what are the incentives for peace for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he faces elections in Israel in the autumn? Director of The Council for Arab British Understanding (Caabu)
In the latest CMEC podcast, CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to Simon Penney CMG, former UK Trade Commissioner for the Middle East and Pakistan. He was appointed in May 2018. He was also His Majesty's Consul (HMCG) to Dubai, appointed in January 2021.Simon spent the majority of his career in the banking sector, with extensive experience leading corporate and financial institution groups and teams across Europe, the Middle East and Asia. In 2023, he returned to the private sector. He has lived in the UAE for 17 years. He is also the Hub-Chairman of the Middle East for the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to former trade commissioner for the Middle East and Consul General to Dubai, Simon Penney, and to international lawyer, Marcus Booth, both based in the UAE. Simon returned to the public sector in 2023 and has lived in the UAE for 17 years.
CMEC Director talks to Gareth Browne, the Dubai-based Middle East Correspondent of The Economist. Gareth believes there are already signs of the beginning of the collapse of the Iranian regime - just days after the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khameini.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to Nicholas Hopton - a former UK ambassador to Iran and three other countries in the Middle East - about the current conflict in the Middle East following the attacks on Iran by the US and Israel, as well as the assassination of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khameini. What happens next, and what can be done to prevent this conflict escalating further? Nicholas Hopton is also the Director-General of the Middle East Association.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to Dr Elisabeth Kendall, Arabist and Mistress of Girton College, Cambridge, about Yemen - its history, recent past and current conflicts.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie is at the Saudi Media Forum in Riyadh where she talks to US Public Affairs expert, Jason Epstein, about the extraordinary transformation that's taken place within the Kingdom over the last decade as well as the Trump administration's current policy in relation to the Middle East and Iran in particular.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie discusses the past and future of the troubled Islamic Republic of Iran with two distinguished ambassadors , Sir John Jenkins and Nicholas Hopton.
CMEC Director talks to maritime expert Dr Ian Ralby about the critical but largely overlooked role played by the sea in all of our lives and in the conflicts in the Middle East - the strategy behind the Houthis strikes on tankers in the Red Sea, how they have jeopardised Egypt's frail economy and the trade routes on which we all rely; how Russia's frantic search for a warn sea port after losing its base in Syria has helped fuel the terrible Sudan war.
One year on from the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie reports from the 2025 Doha Forum. She talks to Michael Lawrence OBE, Chief Executive of Asia House; Baria Alamudddin, respected commentator and journalist; Nicholas Hopton, Director General of The Middle East Association and former UK ambassador to Qatar, Iran, Libya and Yemen, and to Alicia Kearns, shadow Home Affairs minister and former Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie reports on Middle East current affairs from the 2025 Manama Dialogue and talks to Iain Lindsay OBE, former UK ambassador to Bahrain and now advisor to the country's prime minister Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa; Shayan Talabani, geopolitics analyst with the Tony Blair Institute; and Ibrahim Hamidi, Editor-in-Chief of Al Majalla magazine.
CMEC Chairman The Rt Hon. Kit Malthouse MP chairs a panel of distinguished experts examining the future of the Levant & its people. The panel comprises Emir Majid Arslan, academic & leading member of the Lebanese Druze community; Prof. Lina Khatib, Associate Fellow of the Chatham House MENA programme; & Lt Gen. Sir Simon Mayall KBE CB, soldier, author & former MENA advisor to the Ministry of Defence.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie chairs a distinguished panel of experts and asks them how does the UK tackle the chronic under-reach of its soft power in the MENA region. The panel includes Omar Bdour, author and Founder & CEO, London Arabia; Tony Davis, boxing coach for the Bahrain national team; & Nicholas Hopton, Director-General of the Middle East Association and ex-ambassador to 4 MENA countries. From the UK's media & creative industries to London's global appeal, our ancient education establishments, famous military training schools, and our Royal Family, Britain really is great. No wonder so many in the region ask, "Why doesn't Britain assert itself more?"
"The future of Christianity in a changing Israel" is the subject for the first of 3 CMEC debates at the 2025 Conservative Party Conference. CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie introduces 4 distinguished speakers: Mr Ghanem Nusbeibeh, Chairman, Muslims Against Antisemitism; Maj. Gen. Jonathan Shaw CB CBE - former Assistant Chief of the General Staff; Jamie Eyre, CEO, Embrace the Middle East; & - speaking remotely from her home in occupied East Jerusalem is the Palestinian Christian Mrs Hana Kirreh, consultant, researcher and peace activist .
CMEC Special: The UK joins 149 other countries in recognising the state of Palestine. CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie attends a raising of the flag at the Palestinian Mission to mark this historic event. These edited highlights of the commemoration include excerpts from speeches by His Excellency Dr Husam Zomlot, the Palestinian Ambassador, Hamish Falconer MP, minister for the Middle East and the Rt Hon. Kit Malthouse MP, CMEC's Chairman. There are also interviews with Kit Malthouse MP, the distinguished former diplomat Sir Vincent Fean KCVO, and Chris Doyle, Director of CAABU.
Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, former MENA Minister, gives CMEC members a private briefing on the "12-day war" strikes by Israel and the USA, against Iran in June 2025.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie hosts a discussion between two distinguished MENA experts, the soldier & scholar, Lt. Gen. Sir Simon Mayall, and Lebanese-British academic Professor Nader El-Bizri. The wide-ranging discussion covers #Lebanon and its relations with Syria, extremism, economics and how religion also acts as a key driver of identity. They also discuss the ongolng crisis and tragedy of #Gaza.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to Tom Helm, Jerusalem Correspondent for The National Newspaper. Tom reports from his home in The Old City, in Jerusalem, about the current and growing Middle East omni-crisis with Israel attempting to knock out Iran's Uranium enrichment capacity and seemingly non-stop slaughter in Gaza. What happens if the US joins Israel's attack on Iran and what happens to Netanyahu at any eventual conclusion of the conflict?
Damien McElroy, the London Bureau Chief for The National newspaper, introduces the distinguished MENA expert Prof. Lina Khatib (Chatham House, SOAS, Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center) for a fascinating CMEC-hosted talk at the House of Lords about Lebanon, which is now under new political management. Important contributors to the discussion include H.E. Mr Rami Mortada, Lebanon's ambassador to the UK.What happens next in this all-important Levant nation following years of chaos and trauma which have witnessed both the destruction of Hezbollah's military leadership, an incursion by Israel, a deep economic crisis, political turmoil and the devastating Beirut Port explosion? Can Lebanon recover from its omni-crises and what can its neighbours and the West do to help?
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to celebrated Lebanese journalist and editor Nayla de Freige, who is also president of the world-renowned international annual Baalbek Festival, held among the ancient ruins of Baalbek in Lebanon's Beqaa Valley, north east of #Beirut..Nayla, CEO of L'Orient-Le Jour media group, describes the terrible impact on Lebanon and the grave threat posed to her home - the historic city of Baalbek - by the current, devastating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. Israeli strikes have killed at least 3,400 people in Lebanon and have displaced around a million people. It has also jeopardised the extraordinary and ancient legacy of Baalbek as well as its international festival that has witnessed performances down the years by great artists including Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis and Placido Domingo. As this podcast goes live, a ceasefire has been announced between Israel and Hezbollah.
CMEC Director talks to Cameron Hudson about the civil war raging in Sudan. Cameron Hudson is Senior Fellow in the Africa program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies based in Washington, DC. He has served in a number of high level roles in think tanks, NGOs and with the UN and in the U.S. government specialising in Sudan and genocide. Cameron began his government career as an intelligence analyst in the Africa Directorate at the CIA.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to Saudi sports star, in the ring, on the pitch, and in management, Rasha Al Khamis about the success and popularity of women's sports in Saudi Arabia and the extraordinary cultural and societal changes that have made it possible. Rasha Al-Khamis is one of the women leading the way in Saudi sport. She served for more than five years on the board of directors of Alula Sports Club. She is ex vice-president of the board of directors at the Saudi Boxing Federation and currently sits on the board of directors at the Asian Boxing Co-federation. She spearheads the women committee at the Arab Boxing Federation. She holds 4 Guinness World Records and is the first female certified boxing coach from the Saudi Boxing Federation.Rasha has +10 years in leading consulting firms in Riyadh. During this time, she specialised in designing and implementing dynamic strategies, business re-engineering, target operating models, performance management, and conducting in-depth cost analyses within the Sports, Culture, and Entertainment industries. Rasha’s experience also includes working at a design engineering firm in Los Angeles, where she played a pivotal role in the success of various LA-based metropolitan projects. Rasha is a graduate of the University of Southern California, holding a Master’s in Public Policy and Management.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks about the dramatic events in Syria and the sudden collapse of the 53-year old Assad regime to author and journalist Con Coughlin, the executive defence and foreign affairs editor of the Telegraph, and author of several books, including his latest book, Assad: The Triumph of Tyranny.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie is at the 2024 Doha Forum and discusses latest events in the Middle East & North Africa, including the lightening collapse of the Assad regime in Syria, with ex-ambassador Nicholas Hopton, Director-General of the Middle East Association, the Right Hon. Victoria Prentis, former Attorney-General, Chris Doyle, Director of the Council for Arab -British Understanding, the Syrian historian Amr Al-Azm, professor of Middle East history and anthropology at Shawnee State University in the U.S, and the Rt. Hon. Tobias Ellwood, former Middle East minister of state at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office.
Charlotte Leslie talks to renowned scholar and security specialist Dr H.A Hellyer FRSA FRHistS - Senior Associate Fellow in International Security Studies at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) for Defence and Security (UK). He is also a scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.What can the Middle East & North Africa expect under what is expected to be a turbulent 2nd Trump presidency? Dr Hellyer believes Israel may annex parts - if not all - of the occupied West Bank, and possibly even settle parts of Gaza. The years ahead should prove a testing time for a testing time for International rule of law and the bodies and courts established to uphold it.Dr Hellyer has more than 20 years of experience in governmental, corporate advisory, and academic environments in the West, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks Ex-Defence Secretary Sir Liam Fox about the growing global water crisis - the subject of Sir Liam's latest book, "The Coming Storm, Why water will write the 21st Century."The combination of an ever-increasing global population, climate change, industrialisation, urbanisation and limited natural resources means that one difficulty, above all, will shape the political, economic and security environment in the years ahead: that is water. By 2030, an astonishing 47 percent of the entire global population will live in high water stress areas. It is inevitable in conjunction with rising global temperatures - that water shortages will drive future conflict and migration.Water is finite and more than 97.2 per cent of it is undrinkable sea water. Desalination creates highly toxic brine that cannot be dumped into the sea. From the Jordan basin to the River Nile, water is becoming ever more precious, ever more important and ever more fought over. In a fascinating interview, Sir Liam talks about the possible future solutions to this growing crisis - he rightly describes as The Coming Storm.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to The Right Hon. Alistair Burt, the highly respected former Foreign Office Minister of State for the Middle East and North Africa on the first anniversary of the October 7th terror attacks by Hamas on Israel which resulted in the murder of around 1,195 Israelis, with another 251 taken hostage.The attacks in turn have led to a massive 12 month-long military response by Israel against Gaza and the deaths of at least 41,000 Palestinians, mainly civilians, with thousands more feared dead under the rubble. A further 479 Palestinians have also been killed - mostly by settler extremists - in the occupied West Bank in the last year.Attacks by Israel on Lebanon have so far killed an estimated 2,000 people including a reported 110 health workers. A year later, the conflict shows greater potential of spreading with Israel's current intensive campaign of airstrike on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon and Iran's recent missile attack on Israel. Alistair Burt is an acknowledged expert on the Middle East and openly discusses his own fears and hopes for the region.
Conservative Shadow Foreign Secretary The Right Hon. Andrew Mitchell MP was a special panel guest at CMEC's second conference event in Birmingham for CPC24 - "Tackling migration starts in North Africa" - does it?" CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie chaired the panel discussion which also included Middle East experts Ghanem Nuseibeh, the businessman and Chairman of Muslims against Antisemitism, and Major General Jonathan Shaw CB CBE, the retired soldier, author and consultant. Our experts discuss the issues such as war, climate change, food and water shortages which are driving migrations flights from the Sahel area of Africa and North Africa. What can the West do to help make these countries sustainable and staunch the flow of misery - aided and abetted by ruthless people traffickers to Europe and the UK?
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie introduces a an impressive panel of Middle East experts at the Conservative Party Conference 2024 to discuss "The UK's global presence after October 7th". In the chair for the discussion is The Right Honourable Alistair Burt, the highly respected former Former Office minister for the Middle East. (@AlistairBurt UK.)The other distinguished members of the panel were Dr Lina Khatib, Director of the SOAS Middle East Institute and Associate Fellow of Chatham House(@LinaKhatibUK), Lt. General Sir Simon Mayall CB KBE, author, soldier and Middle East expert (@SimonMayall) and Nicholas Hopton, the Director General of The Middle East Association and former British ambassador to Iran, Libya, Qatar and Yemen. (@NicholasHopton)
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to Lt. General Sir Simon Mayall CB KBE - also an author, historian and an expert on the Middle East - about the current crisis in Lebanon.In recent days Israel has assassinated the head of Hezbollah - Hassan Nasrallah, and launched a series of airstrikes against Hezbollah and Hamas targets within Lebanon, killing Hamas's leader there, Fatha Sharif. An estimated 1,600 people have been killed in the Israel-Hezbollah conflict since October 8th, 2023, the day after the Hamas attack on Israe.Israel has also attacked Iranian proxies the Houthis in Yemen. What does all this mean for the MENA region and the world? Could, for example, Israel soon strike at Iran's nuclear infrastructure as part of its current military campaign? Sir Simon's latest book, House of War, is a history of crucial battles affecting the history of the Middle East and Europe
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to award-winning journalist and Arabist Gareth Browne who reports from #Beirut about the assassination of Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasralllah and the implications for the Middle East and the world.@BrowneGareth talks to @CharlotteLeslie about what the effective decapitation of #Hezbollah? Has Israel destroyed the group that first emerged from its own occupation of southern Lebanon 40 years ago or will a more radicalised group emerge in its place?
The assassinations on July 31st by Israel of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr in southern Lebanon have seriously escalated tensions in the region, and now acutely for Lebanon.CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to the award-winning journalist Gareth Browne who is based in Beirut, and writes about the Middle East for The Economist, about the expected retaliation from Iran, following Haniyeh's assassination on its own soil, and that of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah leader, Shucker. What could such retaliation mean for Lebanon which has already been plunged into a deep security crisis since the events of October 7th? Could it drag this small, multi-crisis-hit country into its first war since 2006 and lead to the feared wider regional conflict?
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie introduces highlights from the inaugural WiMENA (www.wimena.com) Women in Sports Conference that took place on June 6th, 2024 at Stamford Bridge, the home of Chelsea FC.The conference was held in partnership with the Arab British Chamber of Commerce ( abcc.org.uk) and featured inspirational sportswomen from the Middle East and North Africa as well as ambassadors, Ministers, and sports leaders from the MENA region and beyond.Spearkers: (In order of appearance) - The Rt Hon Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean, - HRH Princess Reema bint Bandar Al Saud, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the US, - HRH Prince Khalid bin Bandar Al Saud, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the UK, - Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the foreign office minister of state for the Middle East and North Africa, - Baroness Tani Grey-Thompson DBE, the former para-Olympian, - Katy Storie, Former England Rugby Player, Director of Sport for Newcastle University, - Karen Webb Moss, Chair of British Swimming and "More than Equal"- Burca Cetinkaya, the Turkish rally driver and Chair of FIA Women in Motorsport Commission, -Sarah Essam Hassanin, Egyptian women's national football team and TV commentator, - Lama Alfozan, fencer and member of the Saudi Athlete Committee.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to Amr Ramadan, a climate change young advocate and activist from Egypt who has been working with thew British Council.Amr talks about his work in tackling this enormous challenge. His own city of Alexandria is one of the cities facing the threat of climate-changed induced rising sea levels.Of all the threats we face, climate change is perhaps the greatest and most urgent. Record temperatures are now the norm, and a recent survey of many of the world's leading climate scientists showed that most of them expected temperatures to rise to at least 2. 5 degrees above pre industrial levels. That's far in excess of the 1. 5 degrees rise the world had hoped to keep under. Meanwhile, our attention is drawn by war in Gaza and Ukraine, and elections at home and in the US.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie introduces the 76th anniversary commemoration of the Nakba from Methodist Central Hall in central London on May 15th 2024.The event is compared by Kate Hardie-Buckley, the film maker & journalist, and was introduced with a speech by H.E. Dr Husam Zomlot, Palestinian Ambassador to the UK. Contributions can be heard from Bakir Oweida, journalist & Nakba survivor, Aymen Odeh, the Palestinian lawyer & politician, Adnan Joubran, the oud player & composer, Sarah El Agha, the Palestinian/Irish actress and writer,Dr Atef Al Shaer, the Palestinian author, Dr Hassan Abu SIttah, the Palestinian/British surgeon, Rola Azar, the Palestinian artist & singer, The Rt. Hon. Sir Alan Duncan KCMG, the former Minister of State for Europe & North America at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, a recitation of "Gaza's Bell Jar" by Ramzi El Dabbagh, Palestinian working on Palestinian advocacy, Mutaz Azayza, Palestinian photo-journalist, 3 short recitations by Sarah Agha, Mutaz Malhees and Taleen Radwan. The event is concluded by Omar Kamal, the Palestinian singer & composer.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks about global conflicts from Gaza to Ukraine to Sir Richard Barrons, one of the British Army's most distinguished former generals. He has served in a variety of different theatres from Iraq to Afghanistan. He has warned that Ukraine could face defeat by Russia and talks also about the impact the war in Gaza is having on international relations.Sir Richard was Assistant Chief of the General Staff (2010) covering the Strategic Defence and Security Review and Defence Reform exercises before promoting to Lieutenant General (2011) and taking post as Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff (Military Strategy & Operations), the director of operations for UK armed forces. He assumed command of Joint Forces Command on promotion to General, 19 April 2013.
Chatham House Associate Fellow, Professor Yossi Mekelberg, talks to CMEC director Charlotte Leslie about the Israel-Palestine conflict, six months on from October 7th, and what it means for Israel, a future state of Palestine and the world.Yossi, Professor of International Relations and Associate Fellow of the MENA Programme at Chatham House, offers a critique of the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and his conduct of the war against Hamas since the terrible events of October 7th. Professor Mekelberg argues that western nations that support Israel should be critical friends of both Israel and an aspirant Palestinian state.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to renowned attorney Daniel Seidemann. Since 1991, Daniel Seidemann has focused on the geopolitics of contemporary Jerusalem and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In 2012, Queen Elizabeth II awarded him an honorary MBE for his work.Daniel talks to Charlotte about the Gaza crisis and how it has impacted his home city of Jerusalem and Israel as a whole. He singles out Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu for the response to the Hamas's shocking October 7 terror attack - which he says has led to war crimes - and also discusses the current state of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and what he says has been "the collapse" in support for Israel caused by its assault on Gaza..
In the second of CMEC's series of podcasts with the British Council - Charlotte Leslie discusses the growing prominence of the English language in francophone north Africa with Hamza Koudri -.the British Council's Country Director for Algeria.Speaking from Algeria, Hamza explains that English is becoming increasingly prevalent in north Africa - giving pupils and students access to greater opportunities and resources. But that does not mean it will replace French and Arabic in francophone north Africa.However, it is testimony to the growing hegemony of English as a dominant international language. How will this phenomenon change the culture and society of these famously polyglot countries?
This year, Christmas will be dark in Bethlehem. In a special Christmas edition of the CMEC podcast, CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie discusses the Israel Palestine conflict, and the Gaza crisis with The Very Reverend Canon Richard Sewell - the Dean of St George's College in Jerusalem.Richard talks about the deep impact the terror attack of October 7th, and subsequent response from the Israeli government, is having on Jerusalem, the Palestinian people, the occupied Palestinian Territories and Israelis.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie attended the 2023 Doha Forum & discussed the Middle East's and the world's response to the Gaza crisis with Chris Doyle, Director of the Council for Arab- British Understanding (Caabu) Jane Kinninmont, Policy & Impact Director for the European Leadership Network, The Rt. Hon. Dominic Grieve, ex-Attorney General for England & Wales, Ibrahim Olabi, a Syrian-British barrister specialising in human rights law, Professor Lina Khatib, Director of the SOAS Middle East Institute & Lt.General Sir Simon Mayall KBE, author, soldier & Middle East expert.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to Air Marshal Martin "Sammy" Sampson CBE DSO, experienced fighter jet pilot and military-diplomat extraordinaire to the Middle East and North Africa.Air Marshal Sampson's official job title is UK Defence Senior Advisor Middle East North Africa (DSAME) and visits countries throughout MENA. He is also the Armed Forces Muslim Champion and Trustee of the National Muslim War Memorial Trust.Charlotte caught up with Sammy at the 2023 IISS Manama Dialogue in Bahrain and talked to him about the extraordinary diplomacy he conducts in the MENA and the impact that the Gaza crisis is having on the region.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie attends the IISS Manama Dialogue 2023 (@IISS_org) - at one of the gravest times of crisis for the Middle East- the Gaza-Israel conflict that began with the October 7th terror attacks by Hamas on Israel.Charlotte talks to two influential and experienced observers of the region, His Excellency Mr. Hossam Zaki, the Assistant General Secretary of the Arab League, and Baria Alamuddin, author and columnist with Arab News.
Charlotte Leslie, the Director of CMEC, talks about the conflict in #Gaza to Gershon Baskin, distinguished former hostage negotiator with Hamas and Israel and the Middle East director of the International Communities Organisation. Gershon was involved in the negotiations over Gilad Shalit - the Israeli soldier held hostage in Gaza by Hamas for more than 5 years. Shalit was later released in exchange for a significant number of Palestinian prisoners.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie speaks to the award-winning journalist, Gareth Browne, from Ramallah, in the West Bank, the Occupied Palestinian Territories. As the world's eyes are fixed on the Gaza Strip, events in the West Bank are moving fast. At time of broadcast, 140 Palestinians have been killed by Israel in the West Bank. We look at the unfolding situation there, the war in Gaza, and the wider implications for the region, the UK, and the world.
Charlotte Leslie, Director of CMEC, talks to Thomas Helm, the Jerusalem Correspondent for The National, the distinguished English language daily based in Abu Dhabi, about the recent tragedy and conflict in Israel and Gaza.Tom talks about the growing crisis on the ground in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs) and the context of the latest conflict that began with the shocking terror attacks on Israel by Hamas on October 7th. Approximately 1,400 Israeli citizens are thought to have been brutally murdered and upwards of 3,000 Palestinians are believed to have died so far in the assault by Israel on Gaza. Many children on both sides are believed to have perished in this latest stage of a conflict that seems endless and intractable.
The UK government estimates that a UK-GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) Free Trade Agreement (FTA) could increase trade by 16 per cent. But FTAs do not come easy. The European Union has been negotiating with the GCC since 1990.Can Britain seal a deal that works at all levels? We talk to those at the front line of navigating the challenges. Speakers:Moderator: Nour Al Ali - Bloomberg NewsLord Johnson of Lainston - Minister of State for Business and TradeHRH Prince Khalid bin Bandar al Saud - Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the UKH.E Mansoor Abulhoul - Ambassador of the UAE to the UK
Charlotte Leslie, Director of CMEC, introduces the 2nd of a series of 4 debates at the 2023 Conservative Party Conference in Manchester.The Rt Hon Alistair Burt, the highly-respected two-time Minister of State for the Middle East, chairs the debate with two eminent guests - Con Coughlin, the Defence Editor of The Telegraph, and Shayan Talabany, an analyst at the Tony Blair Institute.The panel discuss the tragedy of Syria and the long-running conflict that has caused a humanitarian and security disaster in the Middle East - Isis, the Captagon drug smuggling crisis and a refugee catastrophe. Bashar al-Assad presides over the disaster with support of Russia and Iran. What can, and should, the West do?
Charlotte Leslie, Director of CMEC, chairs the first of of 4 of CMEC's CPC'23 debate series: "Who's BRIC-ing it? Can NATO and the West maintain relevance in the MENA region?"Saudi-Iran rapprochement, China stepping up its deal-making diplomacy in MENA, the rise and expansion of BRICS influence, the possibility of de-dollarisation.As tectonic plates shift, CMEC brings together world experts to discuss how NATO, the West and the UK maintain relevance in the global future. Our 2 speakers are Sir John Jenkins KCVO - former UK Ambassador to Syria, Libya, Iraq and Saudi ArabiaAnd Mina Al-Oraibi - the British-Iraqi journalist and commentator and Editor of The National Newspaper, based in Abu Dhabi.
Charlotte Leslie, Director of CMEC, leads a delegation of 5 British parliamentarians to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, a bastion of stability in the Middle East, and a valued and important ally of the United Kingdom.Jordan faces a number of challenges. It is bearing the brunt of the region's refugee crisis - with 1.3 million Syrian refugees. The Kingdom is also having to deal with a serious water shortage, exacerbated by climate change, as well as the challenges posed by the Captagon smuggling racket, run by Hezbollah in Lebanon and elements of the Assad regime in neighbouring Syria.Charlotte interviews Rob Butler, Conservative MP for Aylesbury, Lord Risby of Haverhill, the Conservative peer, Dr Alia Hatoug-Bouran, the Jordanian senator, and Dina Al-Bashir, a member of Jordan's House of Representatives.
The prospects for peace and a two state solution for Palestinians and Israelis have never looked so bleak. Benjamin Netanyahu leads a controversial government dominated by far right and ultra nationalist ministers clearly ill-disposed opposed to the establishment of a Palestinian state.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie takes stock on the current situation with two activists, one an Israeli and the other a Palestinian.
Ashraf Ajrami is a a writer, journalist and a former Palestinian government minister; Susie Becher is a member of the Policy Working Group on Palestine/Israel that promotes human rights for both Palestinians and Israelis and works towards ending the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory. Both Susie and Ashraf talk about their hopes for a two state solution and the many obstacles that currently stand in the way of a lasting peace.
Con Coughlin, The Telegraph's Defence Editor and author, talks to CMEC's Director Charlotte Leslie about his new book The Triumph of Tyranny. This fascinating and insightful book published by Pan Macmillan lifts the lid on the brutal Assad regime which has been in power in Syria for 53 years. With decades of reporting experience in the Middle East, Con Coughlin explains the family's rise to power and how it has retained control through torture, murder and war.
This podcast tells the remarkable story of how a theatre company - the Khaleej Aden theatre troupe - brought William Shakespeare's Hamlet to war-torn Yemen, and provides a valuable insight into Yemenis living with war.CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to the Aden-based film and theatre director, Amr Gamal, about the challenges in putting on the production, the war in Yemen and the yearning Yemenis have for peace and a sense of normality, whatever that might look like. Amr Gamal also talks about the valuable support he received from the British Council. This is the first in a series of podcasts looking at the British Council's work in the MENA region.
This podcast covers the #NAKBA 75 Commemoration at Westminster Central Hall on May 12th 2023 that was led by H.E Dr Husam Zomlot, the Palestine Ambassador to London.Other speakers included the Rt Hon Crispin Blunt MP, Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur, The Rt Hon Layla Moran MP, The Rt Hon Bambos Charalambous MP & Dr Aimee Shalan, Chair of the British Palestine Committee.
CMEC's Director Charlotte Leslie talks to Roger Macmillan, Director of Safety & Security at Iran International, an independent Persian speaking news service. Roger Macmillan talks about the sustained campaign of threats and intimidation waged by the regime against staff at Iran International, which has reported fearlessly on the extensive human rights abuses in Iran.Iran has accused Iran International of inciting recent protests against the regime and even levelled false allegations that the station was "a terrorist organisation." The threats posed by Iran were so severe that in February 2023, Police in London could no longer guarantee the safety of staff and so Iran International decided to base its operation in Washington DC. Mr Macmillan explains how Iran has attempted to to export its repression of the media to encompass overseas journalists.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie - at the IISS Manama Dialogue '22 - talks to CMEC's Honorary President, Lord Soames, (pictured, left) to Sir Alan Duncan KCMG, former Foreign Office minister and former CMEC chairman, to HE Roddy Drummond, UK's Ambassador to Bahrain, and to Iain Lindsay OBE, a former ambassador to Bahrain and advisor to the Bahrain Economic Development board. Topics include the Russia-Ukraine war, changes in Bahrain, Iranian influence in the region and the Syria and Yemen conflicts.
CMEC`'s Director Charlotte Leslie interviews Matthias Burchard, the Representative to the EU of the UN Relief & Works Agency (UNRWA), about the critical role played by the Agency in looking after 5.8 million Palestinian refugees. Mr Burchard explains the vital work of the UNRWA which provides, health, education and social care services across the region for Palestinian refugees, and robustly defends the Agency against what he describes has been a "malicious campaign" that's been conducted against it over the years. UNRWA has faced many funding challenges, not least when Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew funding from UNRWA in August 2018 - a move since reversed by the Biden White House.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie chairs the 2022 CMEC Party Conference Event on the impact on the Middle East of Russia's illegal war against Ukraine - with special guests and Middle East experts Lt. Gen. Sir Simon Mayall, Baria Alamuddin, the celebrated author and columnist, and Dr Ziya Meral, Director for Research and Programmes and Head of Strategic Studies at the Centre for Historical Analysis and Conflict Research as well as Senior Associate Fellow of Rusi.
Lt General (Ret.d) Sir Simon Mayall KBE CB reflects on his childhood in Yemen and a remarkable military career that was interwoven with the last tumultuous half century of the Middle East and North Africa.
In this podcast interview by CMEC's Director Charlotte Leslie, Sir Simon talks about his time as a Soldier in the Sand, the title of his book, which is very much a personal history but one that explains the history of the Middle East in an eloquent and accessible way.
This is the third in a series of CMEC podcasts on Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 strategy – being done in conjunction with the King Faisal Centre for Research and Islamic Studies based in Saudi Arabia.
At the heart of Vision 2030 is Neom, the astonishing and carbon neutral city being built along the Red Sea Coast in northern Saudi Arabia. It has been described as the Kingdom's "new oil".
CMEC's Director Charlotte Leslie talks about Neom to Dr Aisha Al-Sarihi, a research fellow at the National University of Singapore’s Middle East Institute, and Dr Rami Alharbi, a senior research specialist at the Ministry of Culture in Saudi Arabia.
In the latest CMEC podcast, CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks Turkey with Dr Ziya Meral, a senior associate fellow at RUSI, as well as being a programmes director specialising in global trends shaping defence and security, politics and foreign policies of Turkey and the Middle East. Since Russia began its attack on Ukraine in late February, Turkey has assumed an even greater significance, thanks to its geography and complex network of global alliances. Recently, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened to boycott the NATO applications of Sweden and Finland. So what next for this regional Middle East superpower in these dark times?
This is the 3rd in a series of podcasts on Turkey sponsored by Karkin and Yuksel, the leading Turkish law firm based in the heart of London.
Chris Doyle has - for 20 years - been the Director of Caabu, the Council for Arab-British Understanding. An Arabist by education and background, Chris is a respected commentator on the Arab World and on the issue of Palestine in particular.
Chris talks to CMEC's Director Charlotte Leslie about the impact of the war in Ukraine on the Middle East and the way Arabs interpret the reaction of the West to the conflict in contrast to the long-running conflicts in the MENA region.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie talks to Peter Millett CMG, who was, from 2015, for 3 years, the UK's Ambassador to the troubled and war-torn country of Libya.
Chaos and civil war has wracked Libya since 2011 and the fall and death of the dictator Colonel Mu'ammar Gaddafi. Warring rival governments were established in the East and West and militias have fought for control of the country's resources.
Peter Millett, also Chairman of the Libyan British Business Council, warns of Russia's malign influence in Libya, largely through Wagner Group mercenaries, and says that the UK and the West must help bring stability to this important country so close to Europe.
Prime Minister Theresa May congratulates CMEC on its forthcoming 40th anniversary and "its vital work" in the region, and its role in creating a more peaceful and prosperous world"
Almost 19 years after the 2003 invasion of Iraq, CMEC's Charlotte Leslie interviews senior Iraqi official Mr Mohamed al-Daraji about the necessity of maintaining security in Iraq.
Mr Al-Daraji - the President of the country's National Defence Industries Commission, effectively Iraq's arms department - speaks candidly about the current security and political challenges facing Iraq, particularly following Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the resurgence of the Islamic State group, also known as Daesh.
Mr Al-Daraji says the UK in particular has an important role in engaging with #Iraq and helping the country maintain security against the many threats against it.
CMEC'S Director Charlotte Leslie explores the central role of women now and in the future in Saudi Arabia, as the Kingdom evolves away from its dependence on oil, with two influential Saudi figures.
Dr Thoraya Obaid was the first Saudi woman to head up a UN agency when she was appointed as Under-Secretary General of the UN Population Fund. In 2013, she was one of the 30 women to join the King's Shura Council.
After a successful business career, principally in the energy and steel sectors, Ibrahim Almubarak was appointed deputy minister in the Ministry of Labour and Social Development - responsible for social security. Here he's spear-headed reforms of social security, partly aimed at getting women into the workplace.
Charlotte Leslie reports from the IISS Manama Dialogue and talks to Tobias Ellwood, Conservative MP and Chairman of the Defence Select Committee, Baria Alamuddin, celebrated writer and journalist, H.E Roddy Drummond, Britain's Ambassador to the Kingdom of Bahrain, and Mina Al-Orabi, Editor-in-chief of the Abu Dhabi-based The National newspaper.
CMEC's fringe event at the Conservative Party Conference at Manchester, on "Global Britain and the Middle East - Challenges and opportunities." Chaired by CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie. Guest speakers included H.E Sheikh Fawaz Al Khalifa, Bahrain's Ambassador to the UK, H.E. Nabil Ben Khedher, Tunisia's Ambassador to the UK, Baroness Emma Nicholson of Winterbourne, Chair of the Iraqi-British Business Council (IBBC) and Ashley Goodall, also from the IBBC.
As the UK hosts COP26, CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie speaks to Dr Hoda Al-Helassie - a member of the Kingdom's advisory Shura Council, and Dr Yousef Alshammari - an expert in the future of oil and in alternative energy at OPEC, about the rapid change Saudi Arabia is currently under going through its Vision 2030 strategy.
Climate change is forcing the world to wean itself off fossil fuels, and this means huge change in particular for the oil-reducing countries in the Middle East.
Saud Arabia is playing a key role in the region with its own strategy called Vision 2030. This is primarily aimed at diversifying and de-carbonising the Saudi economy, which is currently heavily reliant on oil. Saudi Arabia has a target of Zero Carbon emissions by 2060. As part of this, the Kingdom is building a giant smart city called Neon, and has earmarked $1 trillion to invest in tourism.
Saudi Arabia has managed massive change before, in the decades following the discovery of oil. But what impact could the rapid change and transformation envisaged in Vision 2030 have on a country where Islam is so important and where conservative voices still have influence?
Charlotte Leslie discusses these changes with Dr Hoda Al-Helassie, a member of the Kingdom's advisory Shura Council, and Dr Yousef Alshammari, an expert in the future of oil and in alternative energy at OPEC. Dr Alshammari is the CEO and Head of Oil Research of CMarkits, London.
This podcast is the first in a series related to Vision 2030 which CMEC is producing in partnership with the King Faisal Centre for Research and Islamic Studies.
For the second in our series of podcasts on Turkey, CMEC interviewed Sir David Logan, from the Centre for Turkey Studies and a distinguished former UK Ambassador to Ankara.
This podcast is proudly sponsored by Karkin & Yuksel, a Turkish law firm based in London. You can find more information about Karkin & Yuksel, their London office and their practise areas on their website, www.karkinyuksel.co.uk.
Karkın & Yüksel is a full-service law firm providing a diverse range of legal services, operating from the Gherkin in the City. With a global network and over 25 years of Turkish legal expertise, Karkın & Yüksel offers expert counsel on Turkish law and Turkey related matters across a range of sectors and specialisms and also advises on international law especially international arbitration and international transactions covering multiple jurisdictions.
Murat Karkın and Cüneyt Yüksel are leading Turkish lawyers who previously founded and were the Co-Managing Partners of the largest law firm in Turkey, YükselKarkın Attorney Partnership, which they established in 2006. Murat Karkın and Cüneyt Yüksel were the heads of the Dispute Resolution and Corporate departments. The firm received recognition from a number of international award directories, including “Leading Firm” and “Top Ranked Global Firm”. For consecutive years both Murat Karkın and Cüneyt Yüksel recognised individually as Tier 1 and “Leading Individuals” within Corporate and Dispute Resolution work.
This CMEC Podcast is part of CMEC's new Turkey series.
Turkey is living through tumultuous times. 2021 started with student protests at Istanbul’s Bogazici University over the appointment of a leading supporter of Turkish President Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party as university rector; Ankara caused shockwaves by withdrawing from the Council of Europe’s Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence, also known as the Istanbul Convention; President Erdogan then promptly fired the third Turkish central bank governor in less than 20 months. Meanwhile, arrests of high-profile members of Turkey’s third largest parliamentary party, the Pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party otherwise known as the HDP, continued.
Meanwhile, the chaos and stresses of COVID which have done little to help the country’s troubled economy.
In the first of a series of podcasts on Turkey, CMEC hears from Turkey expert and former Turkish opposition MP Dr Aykan Erdemir.
Aykan is senior director of the Foundation for Defence of Democracies Turkey Program in Washington DC, and a former Republican People's Party (CHP) member of the Turkish Parliament up until 2015. He was a prominent member of the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee, and is a leading advocate in promoting pluralism and religious as well as ethnic freedom and rights in Turkey and he is a founding member of the International Panel of Parliamentarians for Freedom of Religion or Belief.
You can follow Aykan for all things Turkey on Twitter: https://twitter.com/aykan_erdemir
This podcast is proudly sponsored by Karkin & Yuksel, a Turkish law firm based in London. You can find more information about Karkin & Yuksel, their London office and their practise areas on their website, www.karkinyuksel.co.uk.
Karkın & Yüksel is a full-service law firm providing a diverse range of legal services, operating from the Gherkin in the City. With a global network and over 25 years of Turkish legal expertise, Karkın & Yüksel offers expert counsel on Turkish law and Turkey related matters across a range of sectors and specialisms and also advises on international law especially international arbitration and international transactions covering multiple jurisdictions.
Murat Karkın and Cüneyt Yüksel are leading Turkish lawyers who previously founded and were the Co-Managing Partners of the largest law firm in Turkey, YükselKarkın Attorney Partnership, which they established in 2006. Murat Karkın and Cüneyt Yüksel were the heads of the Dispute Resolution and Corporate departments. The firm received recognition from a number of international award directories, including “Leading Firm” and “Top Ranked Global Firm”. For consecutive years both Murat Karkın and Cüneyt Yüksel recognised individually as Tier 1 and “Leading Individuals” within Corporate and Dispute Resolution work.
Palestinian legislative council elections are taking place on the 22nd May this year, for the first time since 2006. This precedes the Presidential elections in July. Yet it will not be Palestine’s first democratic experiment. Long before the advent of the Arab uprisings, Palestine held free and fair elections to choose a president and a parliament. In hindsight, these elections, held in 2005 and 2006 respectively, marked the high point of Palestinian democracy. But the project for Palestinian statehood stalled badly as the result of conflict between the 2 ruling factions of the Palestinian territories, the Islamist Hamas and the secular Fatah. A civil war between the 2 resulted in the Hamas takeover of Gaza, while Fatah retains control of the Palestinian National Authority.
The UK and the international community play an important role in ensuring these elections go ahead freely and fairly. The election may also have a significant impact on Israel-Palestine negotiations towards Palestinian statehood, and on the involvement of western powers in Palestine and Israel.
Hugh Lovatt, policy fellow with the Middle East and North Africa Programme at the European Council on Foreign Relations, speaks to CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie in this latest podcast on the elections, and their significance both for Palestinians as well as the entire Middle East region.
More about Hugh: Since joining ECFR, Lovatt has focused extensively on EU policy towards the Middle East Peace Process (MEPP), domestic Palestinian politics, and Israeli regional policy. Lovatt co-led a 2016 track-II initiative to draft an updated set of final status parameters, and has worked to advance the concept of EU Differentiation, which was enshrined in UN Security Council Resolution 2334. Lovatt also co-developed an innovative online project mapping Palestinian politics.
His most recent publications include Rethinking Oslo: How Europe can promote peace in Israel-Palestine (July 2017) and Gaza’s fragile calm: The search for lasting stability (November 2018). He is regularly interviewed or quoted in international media, including by AFP, Reuters, Newsweek, France24, and Al Jazeera.
Prior to this, Lovatt worked as a researcher for International Crisis Group and as a Schuman Fellow in the European Parliament focusing on Middle-East policy. He also worked for Aga Khan University’s Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations as an Arabic translator.
Lovatt studied Arabic at the Institute for Arab and Islamic Studies at Exeter University as well as at the Institut Français du Proche-Orient (IFPO) in Damascus. He then went on to earn an MA in Near and Middle Eastern Studies at the London School of Oriental and African Studies, where he majored in Anthropology. Lovatt is Chairman of the Brussels-based European Middle East Project (EuMEP).
In 2018, President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action reached between Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, including the United Kingdom, back in 2015. Here in the UK, the government’s priority remains to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapons capability, to promote stability and security in the region, secure the release of our dual- nationals, and to keep the diplomatic door open for discussions across the full range of UK interests. So, what can the West do now to fix its troubled relationship with Iran and how best to proceed in the interests of peace in the region and further afield?
To discuss the current state of play, CMEC talks to Dr Sanam Vakil, Deputy-Director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Chatham House and Bob Seely, Conservative MP for the Isle of Wight and a prominent member of the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Select Committee, which late last year published its report on the UK's relationship with Iran, entitled, "No prosperity without justice."
“On the Ground” In Lebanon: The voice of youth with Paula Naoufal
“I know that I am graduating with no future in this country”
Lebanese journalist, Paula Naoufal hosts the first of CMEC’s “On the Ground” series of podcasts, listening to the voice of people actually on the ground in the region. In this episode, she hears the perspective of youth in Lebanon from two Lebanese students: Widad Taleb and Lyne Mneimneh.
“It’s a sectarian mess here… Lebanese people deserve better than this” Both young women played a role in the protests of October 17th 2019 and talk about their experience of living in Lebanon under currency controls, unemployment, economic crisis and covid. “People not protesting is also a message – it says a lot. It says that people are tired, people have lost hope…”
They also give an insight into living through the devastating impact of the Beirut blast of 4th August 2020, and how it hit Lebanon’s youth in particular.“ We all lost something that day. A part of us died when the explosion happened…”
Finally, they talk of their plans for the future and what keeps them committed to fighting for a better country.
Want to find out more? Check out Lyne Mneimneh’s social media news platform on Instragram: @thelawyard And Widad Taleb on Instagram: @Widadtaleb1
About CMEC’s “On The Ground” series:
In CMEC’s “On the Ground” series, we will be providing a platform for young presenters to speak to and amplify the voice of those on the ground in the Middle East. These are important perspectives for decision-makers seeking to understand the region in depth and nuance, but which do not always penetrate policy-making circles. This series does not aim to offer a definitive view of any country or issue, but simply to present an insight into experiences and perspectives of those on the ground، “في الشارع“ in the region, with the aim of enhancing understanding and policy discussion.
If you have an idea for a CMEC ‘On The Ground’ podcast, contact director@cmec.org.uk
An interview with Dr. Reem El Mutwalli of The Zay Initiative (www.thezay.org)
In the week we celebrate International Women’s Day, CMEC Director, Charlotte Leslie, speaks to the founder of The Zay Initiative, Dr. Reem El Mutwalli, about her work.
Dr Reem is the founder of The Zay Initiative. The Zay’s mission is to advance the preservation of Arab cultural heritage through the collection, preservation and digital archiving of Arab historical dress - and crucially, the stories it tells of countries across the Middle East and north Africa.
This growing collection started with UAE traditional dress and is ever expanding to include dress from all over the Arab world, so far from Palestine, Syria, and Lebanon - to Yemen, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabi, Kuwait and Iraq,- to Tunisia, Morocco, Egypt, Libya and Sudan. It includes examples acquired from the simplest rural families to the ruling families of the region.
Dr. Reem provides a unique insight into a world seldom explored in policy circles, focussing on the work, experiences and voice of women throughout the ages in the Arab world, to the modern day.
Charlotte Leslie is an Honorary Patron of The Zay Initiative.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie presents the second podcast in a series marking the 10th anniversary of the Arab Spring. In this podcast, Charlotte examines the continuing tragedy of Syria with Simon Collis, UK Ambassador to Damascus in 2010 and Rime Allaf, the Syrian born writer and political analyst.
A decade on from the day Tunisian man Mohamad Bouazizi set himself on fire in despair and protest, instigating a movement that would become known as 'The Arab Spring', CMEC speaks to two British Ambassadors in the region at the time: Christopher O'Connor OBE was Ambassador to Tunisia, and James Watt CVO Ambassador to Egypt. They talk to us about The Arab Spring, what they saw, and what it means for British policy making today.
An oil-spill 4x larger than the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989 threatens Yemen's red-sea coast. The FSO SAFER is a 1200 footer tanker, holding more than a million barrels of crude oil - and she is disintegrating. If we do nothing, the humanitarian and environmental costs of the oil-spill, not only to civil-war-stricken Yemen, but the whole region and the world's seas will be immeasurable. Maritime Security Expert, Dr. Ian Ralby, CEO of IR Consilium tells us about this impending humanitarian catastrophe you will not have read about in the papers - and what we can do about it.
In an exclusive CMEC three-part series this week, former UK Defence Minister and Foreign Office Minister and Chair of the House of Commons Defence Select Committee The Rt Hon Tobias Ellwood MP, speaks to the UK’s top defence experts about the imminent Strategic Defence and Security Review, and the UK’s future global role.
'3. From East to West: Tobias Ellwood in conversation with Dr Karin von Hippel, Director-General of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI)'
In an exclusive CMEC three-part series this week, former UK Defence Minister and Foreign Office Minister and Chair of the House of Commons Defence Select Committee The Rt Hon Tobias Ellwood MP, speaks to the UK’s top defence experts about the imminent Strategic Defence and Security Review, and the UK’s future global role.
- The Global Picture: Tobias Ellwood in conversation with Professor Michael Clarke, Professor of Defence Studies and author of 'Tipping Point: Britain, Brexit and Security in the 2020s.'
In an exclusive CMEC three-part series this week, former UK Defence Minister and Foreign Office Minister and Chair of the House of Commons Defence Select Committee The Rt Hon Tobias Ellwood MP, speaks to the UK’s top defence experts about the imminent Strategic Defence and Security Review, and the UK’s future global role.
'2. The Middle East: Tobias Ellwood in conversation with Lieutenant General Sir Simon Mayall, former British Army Officer and Middle East Advisor to the Ministry of Defence.'
On February 24, the island Kingdom of Bahrain recorded its first COVID-19 case when a school bus driver tested positive for the coronavirus.
A few weeks prior to that, Bahrain’s Crown Prince Sheikh Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa had seen an interview on Sky News with Professor John Ashton, a former regional director of public health in England. Shortly after that, Professor Ashton boarded a flight to Bahrain to advise the island state on its coronavirus response.
CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie speaks to Professor John Ashton and Dr Jameela alSalman for this special episode on the global fight against Covid-19 and asks what the United Kingdom could potentially learn from the Middle East?
Professor John Ashton: Professor Ashton was North West Regional Director of Public Health and Regional Medical Officer from 1993 to 2006 and Director of Public Health and County Medical Officer for Cumbria from 2006 to 2013. He is well known for his work on Planned Parenthood and healthy cities and for his personal advocacy for public health. He was a member of the British delegation to Macedonia during the Kosovo emergency and played an influential role in resolving the fuel dispute. He has been prominent in the fight for justice for the 96 victims of the Hillsborough football disaster.
John holds chairs in the Liverpool Medical School, Liverpool John Moore’s University, the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Manchester Medical School, the Valencia Institute of Public Health in Spain and the universities of Central Lancashire, Lancaster and Cumbria.
He is the author of many scientific papers, articles and chapters in books and of several books including The New Public Health which has been the standard textbook on public health.
Dr Jameela al Salman: Dr Jameela is a consultant in infectious diseases, geriatrics and internal medicine at Salmaniya Medical Complex in Bahrain. She is a member of the national task force combating COVID-19 in Bahrain
Dr Jameela graduated with honors form the medical school at the Arabian Gulf University. She joined the Salmaniya Medical complex in 1996. Dr Jameela holds triple American Board certification: in internal Medicine, geriatric Medicine, and in Infectious Diseases.
She was awarded by His majesty the king of Bahrain for her achievements in improving clinical services and for the achievement in the antibiotic stewardship program and received the medal of competency in the first degree from his majesty on Bahrain’s national day in 2016.
She has done special training in infection control at Yale University and has many publications in peer reviewed journals. She is an associate professor at the Arabian Gulf University and has received several honours and awards for her scientific contributions internationally.
CMEC’s women’s programme has been slowly building, and we are pleased to present the launch of a schedule of podcasts, webinars and articles which will run throughout the course of the year reflecting on the often-overlooked roles that women play in diplomacy, business, sport, arts and culture throughout the Middle East region.
Our first podcast sees CMEC Director Charlotte Leslie in conversation with the brilliant Sheikha Haya Rashed Al Khalifa.
Sheikha Haya Rashed Al Khalifa is a pioneering lawyer and diplomat from Bahrain. As ambassador to France (1999-2004) she became Bahrain’s first ever female ambassador. She was one of the first two women in Bahrain to practice law when she was admitted as a lawyer in Bahrain in 1979. She is also Bahrain's permanent delegate to UNESCO. She served as the President of the 61st Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) which closed in September 2007. She is the third woman to hold the position. She is the recipient of several notable awards, the most recent of which include the United Nations Millennium Development Goals Special Award, 2007, in recognition of her work in promoting the set of global anti-poverty targets, the Path to Peace Award 2007, from the Path to Peace Foundation, in recognition of acts of individual leadership in the international community, and the Social Creativity Award, representing appreciation for Arab women, at the Sixth Conference of the Arab Thought Foundation. Sheikha Haya is the principal and founding partner of Haya Rashed Al Khalifa Law Firm.
In this podcast, former UK Middle East minister Alistair Burt concludes his series on the issue of annexation with historian and journalist Ian Black, author of many books on the Middle East, the most recent being the seminal 'Enemies and Neighbours: Arabs and Jews in Palestine and Israel, 1917-2017' which was published in 2017.
The views expressed in this podcast are those of the speakers alone.
In this podcast, former UK Middle East minister Alistair Burt discusses with Nickolay Mladenov, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, UN perspectives on the upcoming Israeli annexation of parts of the Occupied Territories.
The views expressed in this podcast are those of the speakers alone.
In this podcast, former UK Middle East minister Alistair Burt discusses with HE Mark Regev, Ambassador of the State of Israel to the UK, Israeli perspectives on the upcoming Israeli annexation of parts of the Occupied Territories.
The views expressed in this podcast are those of the speakers alone.
In this podcast, former UK Middle East minister Alistair Burt discusses with HE Dr. Husam Zomlot, Head of the Palestinian Mission to the UK, Palestinian perspectives on the upcoming Israeli annexation of parts of the Occupied Territories.
The views expressed in this podcast are those of the speakers alone.
On Wednesday 4th March, CMEC hosted a Parliamentary discussion on The UK and the Gulf: security priorities for 2020. We were delighted to have Andrew Bowie MP as chair and to hear from Sir Michael Fallon, Sir Simon Mayall and Ellie Geranmayeh.