This annual lecture is also a launch for Avi Shlaim’s new book. Three Worlds: Memoir of an Arab-Jew which will be published by Oneworld on 8 June. The three worlds of the title are Baghdad to the age of 5, Ramat Gan, Israel, 10 to 15, and school in London, 15 to 18. The book uses a family history to tell the bigger story of the Jewish community in Iraq, its rich culture, its integration into Iraqi society, and its contribution to nation-building at various levels. The lecture revolves round the central concept of the Arab-Jew.

A talk relating to Professor Raz-Krakotzkin's book Toda'at Mishna, Toda'at Mikra

In order to survive in a hostile environment in the Middle East, Israeli decision makers developed a pragmatic regional foreign policy, designed to find ways to approach states, leaders and minorities willing to cooperate with it against mutual regional challenges (such as the Periphery Alliance with Iran and Turkey (until 1979), the Kurds, the Maronites in Lebanon, Jordan, Morocco, South Sudan and more). Contacts with these potential partners were mostly covert.

Sunday’s election represented one of the biggest threats to Erdoğan’s rule so far. He is Turkey’s most imperious leader since Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who founded the country 100 years ago — and he won, by 52 percent to 48 percent, with a campaign that reinforced his authoritarian creed.

The question now facing Turkey — and the wider world — is what the leader will do next.

The apparent triumph of democracy attributed to the revival of civil society in Eastern Europe and neo-liberal energies at the end of the 20th century has yielded to grimmer assessments for democracy and capitalism in the 21st century in the wake of economic crisis, the rise of populist authoritarianism, climate disaster, and war. East-West geopolitical tensions and North-South inequalities challenge Europe and America.

Sustainable peace after conflict requires reconciliation of former adversaries. But, people in post-conflict societies often resist or even reject reconciliation both as a concept and practice. While reconciliation may be desirable, the question is: can people reconcile in the aftermath of mass atrocity, and how do we know they can?

The global trading system is increasingly being affected by geopolitical tensions. This raises important challenges for the development of European trade policy. The talk will look at the multilateral (WTO), regional and autonomous dimension and discuss how EU trade policy is being affected by the new geopolitical environment. It will look in particular into EU policy on WTO reform and the possible development of a EU strategy on economic security.

In cooperation with RESC

LESZEK KOŁAKOWSKI LECTURE
Chair: Timothy Garton Ash (St Antony’s College, Oxford)