Conference Invitation – U.S. Security Strategy as a Zeitenwende for Global Politics
January 15, 2026
Academic seminar – Research on international institutions – contemporary challenges
January 16, 2026
We would like to invite you to participate in the third Middle East Congress which will take place on 5-6 March 2026 in Warsaw at the Faculty of Political Science and International Studies, University of Warsaw. This is the event organised in cooperation with the Institute of Political Science, University of Gdańsk, Faculty of International and Political Studies, Jagiellonian University and Faculty of Political Science and Journalism, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań.
The Congress is an unique opportunity for the exchange of knowledge and research experience on the contemporary political, social and cultural processes in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
The 2026 edition of the Congress is called Beyond the Liberal Order: The Middle East Towards the New Configuration of Global Power. The goal of the Congress is to discuss the region as the laboratory of alternative political and social configurations, emerging in relation between local actors and foreign countries/international organisations. The discussions will cover, e.g., a critique of concept of political order in the context of the MENA experience; war and sovereignty – redefining the right to self-determination in the face of external intervention; non-state actors as creators of new power relations – from Hezbollah to local councils and quasi-state structures; international asymmetry – the hegemony of the US, Europe, and Israel and regional security; new alliances and antagonism – new geopolitical transformations; the economics of war and the geoeconomics of conflict; international law and practice – between declaration and intervention; regional visions of order and security – integration or cooperation initiatives in MENA; societies in conflict – grassroots movements, diaspora, and their impact on politics; the future of international order – can the MENA experience redefining global thinking about politics and security; media, narratives, and disinformation in the MENA region; AI, surveillance, and security: digital faces of power in the Middle East; technology and social transformations: from digital modernization to online activism; migration, mobility, and diaspora; religion and spirituality in times of political crisis: new forms of identity and community in the MENA region; climate, resources, and environmental justice; new forms of authoritarianism and political resilience in the MENA region.
We would like to organise the panel(s) in English dedicated to you in order to enable you to present your research and interests in the MENA region. We would like to encourage you to submit conference papers being at different stages of the research process. It can be a part of your MA or PhD project but also a paper not related to the MA/PhD thesis but concerning an important regional question. Both single case studies and comparative analyses are equally welcome.
It would be a fantastic opportunity for you to get a feedback from the best Polish specialists in the Middle Eastern region.
If you are interested in participation in this important undertaking, please, submit your paper proposal, including first of all its title and abstract with the research goal, methodology and the main research questions (max. 250 words) till 23 January 2026, using the online form (link below). Please, choose Others (Inne) in the part of the form concerning the choice of the panel.
Link to the registration form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfGzgWgm9rNyR-ZzdgpriLb3lyAthEC1du5qu9LXgKSrJk8ww/viewform
kongresbliskiegowschodu@gmail.com
