Middle Powers’ Peace Dividend

A timely analysis of how Middle East and North Africa middle powers use economic integration to defuse conflict and reinforce regional stability.

Examining the postures and constrains of regional middle powers in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), demonstrates how strategic economic integration fosters a peace dividend by restricting escalatory responses to tensions. Through case studies of Turkey-Israel, Iran-Pakistan, and Turkey-Iran dyads, the work illustrates that external pressures, in the form of great power interventions and sanctions, and internal needs such as energy and infrastructure deficits, drive joint projects and electricity, gas, trade, and military industries. These initiatives enhance bargaining leverage with Western states as well as international institutions while promoting nonviolent dispute resolution to safeguard mutual interests. This analysis draws on primary sources like ministry reports and trade volumes and modern examinations of these case studies. The book contends that even absent explicit peace aspirations, economic networking satisfies security concerns, sustain middle power status, and reduce the risk of war, offering actionable insights for peacebuilding in an anarchic region.