Journal - Orient Online

The Role of Environmental Changes and Conflicts on Migration in the MENA Region

Manfred A. Lange

Current migration in the MENA region has assumed levels unprecedented in recent history. A triplet of drivers involving environmental change, migration and conflicts, are root
causes for individuals and communities to move and have been contextualized in the Environmental Change- Migration-Conflict Nexus (ECMC-N). while numerous links between these drivers are known, a comprehensive quantitative description of these links remains forthcoming. Such descriptions will be instrumental in specifying policy measures to reduce adverse consequences of the ECMC-N through joint initiatives by the MENA countries’ governments.

Manfred A. Lange, former Director of the Arctic Center in Rovaniemi, Finland (1992-1995) and Professor of Geophysics at the University of Münster in Germany (1995-2007), was the founding Director of the Energy, Environment and water Research Center at the Cyprus Institute in Nicosia, Cyprus (www.cyi.ac.cy; 2007-2015). His research includes the assessment of climate change impacts with a focus on water- and energy security, renewable energy sources and energy- and water use efficiency in the built environment.

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Domestic and geo-politics put Syrians in Turkey between a rock and a hard place:

James M. Dorsey

Syrian exiles in Turkey, home to the world’s largest Syrian refugee community, are caught in a Catch-22. Many no longer see Turkey as a safe refuge as anti-migrant sentiment in the country mounts. Even worse, Turkish efforts to improve relations with President Bashar al-Assad, whose overthrow Turkey long favored, raise the specter of forced repatriation. Exiles fear that their return will expose them to the Syrian regime’s wrath or turn them into pawns in a demographic game of chess in Turkish and rebel-controlled parts of northern Syria. By relocating refugees of Arab descent to the north of Syria, Turkey hopes to dilute the Syrian Kurdish presence in the region. The exiles’ fate hangs in the balance, with Al-Assad adopting a hard line in negotiating the terms of a reconciliation. Al-Assad insists on an agreed withdrawal of Turkish troops from Syria
as part of a reconciliation. Turkey may no longer seek Al-Assad’s overthrow but says it will discuss a troop withdrawal only once Syria adopts a new constitution and holds inclusive elections in the knowledge that Al-Assadhas no intention of committing political hara-kiri. None of this precludes a mutually beneficial burying of the hatchet that would serve the interests of the Al-Assad regime and Turkey but may not bode well for Turkey’s Syrian exile community.

James M. Dorsey is a Senior Fellow focused on the Middle East and North Africa who publishes widely in peer-reviewed journals as well as non-academic publications. A veteran, award-winning foreign correspondent for four decades in the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, Europe and the United States for publications such as The wall Street Journal, The New York Times and the Financial Times, James has met a multitude of the region’s leaders.
James writes a widely acclaimed blog, The Turbulent world of Middle East Soccer, has published a book with the same title, and authors a syndicated column.

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The Journal for politics, economics, and culture of the Middle East published by the German Orient-Institute

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Orient IV 2024: Migration trends in the MENA region

Orient III 2024: Challenges to trade in the Middle East

Orient II 2024: Aspects of digital transformation from the Gulf to North Africa

ORIENT I 2024: Perspectives on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

ORIENT IV 2023: Conflict mediation and rapprochement across the MENA region

ORIENT III 2023: The invasion of Iraq: 20 years on

The Role of Environmental Changes and Conflicts on Migration in the MENA Region

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A Catch 22: Afghans and the International Migration Regime

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Chinese Migration to the Middle East: Trends, Drivers and Impact

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Global Power Competition: Sudan and Libya

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From “Brothers and Sisters” to “Undesired Refugees"

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Domestic and geo-politics put Syrians in Turkey between a rock and a hard place:

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