ABSTRACT
This study is based on the premise that economic and political cooperation in the Middle East is not only necessary and urgent but also possible. We have explored the barriers and prospects the region faces in building and fostering cooperation. The end of the Cold War has dramatically changed the dynamics in the region creating an environment more conducive to cooperation. Can Middle Eastern governments make use of this window of opportunity or are these governments doomed to miss the train of globalisation and regionalism in the world economy? At a time when the whole world seems to be acknowledging the need for cooperation and democratisation, will the Middle East remain an exception? Our answer to this question is a conditional no. True, the region is still unique with its oil-dependent, inefficient economies, ‘security-minded’ state structures, and with its ongoing or prolonged conflicts together with the over-centralisation of power in the hands of state elites. Yet, there is a limit to how long such policies can be maintained.
