All Episodes

Gulf States Amid the Iran War - Social, Economic and Diplomatic Implications

US-Israel-Iran: Implications for Geopolitics, International Law and the Global Economy

China's Digital Silk Road in the Middle East

[Book Talk] Narratives of Sino-Middle Eastern Futures

S R Nathan Distinguished Lecture 2025

The Prince and the President: US-Saudi Relations in Focus

[Bridging the Gulf Series] Session 19: Strategic UAE - The Engine Behind the UAE's AI Vision

[Book Talk] Twilight of the Saints: The History and Politics of Salafism in Contemporary Egypt

Trump, Israel and Regional Backlash: Understanding Anti-Americanism in the Middle East

China’s Strategy in the Middle East and Prospects for the US-China Engagement

Panel 3: What Lies Ahead?

Panel 2: Middle East and External Powers

Panel 1: Winners and Losers in a New Regional Order

MEI Annual Conference 2025 - Minister Shanmugam session

[Book Talk] Japan and the Middle East

Iran-Israel 12-Day War: Implications for Persian Gulf's Security Order

[Book Talk] Building the Belt and Road Initiative in the Arab World – China’s Middle East Math

[Book Talk] Qatar and the United Arab Emirates: Diverging Paths to Regional and Global Power

Looking Beyond Trump's 'Trillion-Dollar' Diplomacy in the Gulf

Jordan’s Balancing Act - Seeking Stability Amid Regional Turmoil

ME Outlook 2025: The Gulf’s Diversification Through Minerals and AI

ME Outlook 2025: US' Middle East Policy Under President Trump

ME Outlook 2025: The Gulf in the Energy Market

ME Outlook 2025: China’s Expanding Footprint in North Africa

ME Outlook 2025: Shifting Security Dynamics in the Gulf

ME Outlook 2025: Syria in Transition

ME Outlook 2025: Japan's Priorities in the Middle East

ME Outlook 2025: Iran Under Pezeshkian

ME Outlook 2025: China's Middle East Policy

ME Outlook 2025: What's Next for Jordan in the Middle East?

MEI 2024 Round-up with General David Petraeus and Mr Bilahari Kausikan

S R Nathan Distinguished Lecture 2024

ME Outlook 2025: US-China Competition in the Middle East

Closing Session (30 Oct 2024) – The Mirage of Stability in the Middle East

[MEI Salon Series] Tradition within Modernism: Mosque Architecture under Singapore’s Mosque Building Fund

[Book Launch] How to Lose a War: The Story of America’s Intervention in Afghanistan

From the UAE to Azerbaijan: COP 29 Expectations and Challenges

ME 101 Session 5: Renewable Energy Sources: Pre-empting a Sunset Oil Industry

ME 101 session 3 - Saudi Arabia: A Giant Awakened

Feeling the Heat: Gulf States and Climate Shifts

ME 101 Session Two: The UAE - Paddling Faster Ahead of the Gulf Pack

ME 101 Opening Session: Transformations in the Reforming Economies of the Gulf

Iran’s New Presidency: Shifting Tides or Status Quo?

N-word No Longer: The Middle East, South-east Asia, and Nuclear Power

[Book Talk] The Lost Decade - The US Pivot to Asia and the Rise of Chinese Power

[Book Talk] Hope and Despair: Israel's Future in the New Middle East

Crisis in the Geopolitics of MENA: “The More Things Change, the More They Stay the Same.”

Crisis in the Geopolitics of MENA: “The More Things Change, the More They Stay the Same.”

Regional Perceptions of China's Engagement in MENA

[Book Talk] Righteous Politics: Power and Resilience in Iran

[Book Talk] Gulf Monarchies after the Arab Spring

Does COP 28 Signal an End of Fossil Fuels

S R Nathan Distinguished Lecture 2023

COP 28: A course-correction COP?

ME 101 Closing Session

ME101 Lecture 8: Religion and Political Islam in the Middle East and Its Impact on Southeast Asia

ME 101 Lecture 7 - Women and Youth: A Force for Change

ME 101 Lecture 6: Whither Oil and Gas

ME101 Lecture 4 - Climate Change in the Desert

ME101 Lecture 5 - The Changing Gulf: Domestic Policies and Social Reforms

[Book Talk] New Military Strategies in the Gulf

ME101 Lecture 1：Great Power Competition – US, China and Russia in the Middle East

ME101 Lecture 3：Regional Realignment - Israel and Turkey: Non-Arab Regional Powerhouses in Changing Middle East

ME101 Lecture 2: Regional Realignment – Iran-Arab Relations: from Rivalry to Rapproachment

Humanitarian Works in Syria and Lebanon

Hope & an Eye on the Future: The UAE’s Space Sector

Hydrogen - More Hype than Opportunity?

Communicating Credibility and Certainty in Qatar’s Foreign Policy

Communicating Credibility and Certainty in Qatar’s Foreign Policy

Gulf Reformers and South-east Asian Retrenchers

The Abraham Accords: Past, Present and Future

[Book Talk] The Indian Ocean as a New Political and Security Region

China-Mediated Agreement between Saudi Arabia and Iran: A Remarkable Development?

Pushing the Boundaries: Gender and Climate Change in the GCC

[Book Talk] Global Jihad: A Brief History

[Book Launch] Asian Perceptions of Gulf Security

Indigenising Islam as a Minority: A South African Community with Southeast Asian Origins, and the case of Shaykh Seraj Hendricks

Great Power Rivalry and the Middle East

Sinostan: China’s Inadvertent Empire

COP 27 and the Middle East – From Ambitious Climate Pledges to Action?

Lecture #07: Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | The Centrality of Central Asia

[Book Talk] Charity in Saudi Arabia: Civil Society under Authoritarianism

ME 101 Lecture #06: The Challenge Beyond Economics | What to Expect from Egypt Host of Upcoming UN Climate Conference (COP 27)

ME101 Lecture Series 2022 #05: Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | Russia and the Middle East

ME 101 Lecture #04: Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | China – Can the Dragon Tame the Middle East or will the Middle East Tame the Dragon?

ME101 Lecture Series 2022 #03: Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | The US and its Allies – Boots on the Ground or Off Platforms

ME101 Lecture Series 2022 #02: Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | Iran & Turkey – Spoilers of the Regional System?

Bridging the Gulf Episode 15 - Whither Self-Sufficiency? Unpacking the UAE’s Food Security Strategy

ME101 Lecture Series 2022 #01- Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | Competition within Cooperation: The Gulf States in Conciliatory Mood

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond ] Episode 29: Digital Authoritarianism

ME 101 Lecture Series 2022 - Series Introduction

One Jump Ahead: Is the UAE leading the Gulf pack?

[Book Talk] Digital Authoritarianism in the Middle East

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 28: From Unit 8200 to Cybersecurity Training

MEI Salon Cultural Segment IV - Technological Advances at the Hajj and Umrah

[Boots Off The Ground] Episode 27: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Chinese PSC High Tech Sector in Complex Environments

Russia-Ukraine Conflict: In Search of Silver Linings in the Energy Transition

Innovation and Collaboration. 25th anniversary of the Singapore-Israel Industrial Research and Development Foundation

China’s Digital Currency Ripple Effects from the Gulf to Singapore

[Book Launch] Governance and Domestic Policymaking in Saudi Arabia

Turkey’s Middle East Ambitions and Regional Role

[Book Talk] Rethinking Salafism: The Transnational Networks of Salafi ‘Ulama

Socio-cultural Developments in the UAE – Trailblazer in a Shifting Landscape

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 26: Omri Lavie and the Future of Cybersecurity

[Book Discussion] The Middle East & The Indo-Pacific: The New Geopolitics

Can Gulf States End the Yemen War?

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 25: Russian Mercenaries a Weak Link in Great-Power Competition

Climate Commitments: Less Reason for the Arab Region to Cop Out?

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 24: Walking on Thin Ice – Chinese Private Security Sector in Complex Environments

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 23: Russian Power Projection on the Cheap? Russian Private Military Companies’ Implications for Global Security

[Book Discussion] Routledge Handbook on China-Middle East Relations

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 22: Glass Ceiling and Private Security Regulations

Iran-Europe Dynamics and the JCPOA Negotiations

MEI Salon Cultural Segment III – Al Zubarah: The Past, Present and Future of a Pearling Town

Bridging the Gulf Episode 12 — A Compatible Contradiction? Heritage and Modernity in Gulf Cities

[Book Discussion] Three Dangerous Men: Russia, China, Iran and the Rise of Irregular Warfare

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 21: Bellingcat and Open-source Intelligence

Lebanon: On the Brink of a New Civil War?

ME 101 Closing Session: Everything You Wanted to Know about the Middle East but were Afraid to Ask

Perfect Imperfection: Socio-cultural and Religious Reforms in Saudi Arabia

ME 101 Lecture #12: The Centrality of Central Asia

Lecture #11: From Fake News to Fake Journalists: Gulf Disinformation that Fooled the World

From the Middle East to Afghanistan: The Evolution of the Islamic State in Khorasan Province

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 20: The Evolution of Russian Private Military Companies from Syria to Mali

Bridging The Gulf [Episode 11]: Scoring Opportunity: Sport in the Gulf’s Soft Power Armoury

Lecture #10: Religion and Political Islam in the Middle East and Its Impact on Our Region

Lecture #09: The Challenge Beyond Economics | Women and Youth – A Force for Change

2021 S R Nathan Distinguished Lecture

Lecture #08: The Challenge Beyond Economics | Climate Change in a Desert

Ertuğrul Goes East: Turkey Rising in South Asia

The Eagle Looks East: A Conversation with General (ret.) David H. Petraeus

ME 101 Lecture #07: The Challenge Beyond Economics | Renewables as the New Oil or the Geopolitics of Carrots

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 19:The Future of Private Military

Lecture #06: The Politics of Economic Reform

ME 101 Lecture #05: Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | Israel – More than Just Palestine

In Conversation with Ambassador Robert Hunter: Making Sense of the Carter Doctrine

Lecture #04: The US and its Allies – Boots on the Ground or Off Platforms

ME 101 Lecture #03: Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | China – Can the Dragon Tame the Middle East or will the Middle East Tame the Dragon?

Uncovering the Gatekeepers of Islamic Finance

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 18: Business and Human Rights: A Role for Private Security Companies?

ME 101 Lecture #02: Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | Iran, Turkey, Russia – Allies, Foes or Marriages of Convenience

Afghanistan: What Happens Next?

ME 101 Lecture #01: Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | The Gulf States – The Competition for Influence

ME 101 Series Introduction: Developments in the Middle East: Why Singapore Should Care

Bridging The Gulf [Episode 10]: MEI Salon Cultural Segment II – A City as Old as Time: Nizwa, Oman

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 17: America’s Global Military-Labour Infrastructure

Between Co-operation & Confrontation: Has the US Renounced the Carter Doctrine?

Oil & Gas Market Scenarios: Prospects for the GCC countries in a “Net Zero by 2050” World

Transitioning to Non-oil Economies in the Gulf: Successes, Failures, and the Path Forward

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 16: The Invisible Nepali Labour of the US War in Afghanistan

[Book Talk] Saudi Arabia and Indonesian Networks: Migration, Education and Islam

A Middle East Bet on China? Strategic Partnerships and Regional Rivalries

Iran's Presidential Election: Impact on the Islamic Republic's Policies

Blockade Blowback: Qatar-Iran Ties After Al-Ula

Bridging the Gulf Episode 8 — MEI Salon Cultural Segment I: The Tradition and Sport of Falconry

The Politics of Islamic Pop

Bridging The Gulf Episode 7 — Qatar: Small State, Big Politics, and the Road to Diversification

Beyond the Chokepoints: New Geopolitics of Arabian Seaports

China: Full Steam Ahead in the Gulf?

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 15: Surrogate Warfare -The Transformation of War in the 21st Century

Bridging The Gulf Episode 6 — The UAE: Federation, the Dubai Model and Abu Dhabi Leadership

Iran-GCC Dynamics and Regional Security

Existing in an Existential Crisis: The Asian Response to Climate Change

Bridging the Gulf Episode 5 The Omani Odyssey — Renaissance, Modernisation and Unfolding Futures

[Book Talk] Making It Count: Statistics and Statecraft in the Early People’s Republic of China

Bridging the Gulf Episode 4 — Answering the Five “W”s of Kuwaiti Democracy

Bridging the Gulf Episode 3 — Beyond Oil and Dates: Saudi Arabia’s Past, Transition and Future

[Book Talk] Protecting China’s Interests Overseas: From the Middle East to Central Asia

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 14: Rethinking Military Waste

Bridging the Gulf Episode 2 — Top 5 Myths about Energy in the Gulf

The China-Iran Deal: Mirage or Game Changer?

Bridging the Gulf Episode 1 — Politics, Energy, and Opposition in the Gulf: What You Need to Know

Singapore and Israel: Navigating the Technological Superpower Competition

Hebrew Language and Culture Colloquium | Day Two

Hebrew Language and Culture Colloquium | Day One

Gulf Cooperation Council Economies – Strategic Overview

[Regional Forum] Central Asia-ASEAN: Opportunities in Trade, Investment and Education

The Gulf and Beyond: Assessing Israel’s Expanding Arab Relations

China’s Political Entanglements in the Middle East: Escaping Inevitability?

Egypt and Myanmar: How the Military’s Economic Interests Complicates Political Transition

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 13: Humanitarian Aid Agencies Risk Management

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 12: Kidnap and Ransom Insurance - Managing Risk in the Cyber and Maritime Space

Middle East Film Festival 2021 | Q&A with Mehdi M Barsaoui

[MEI Salon Series] Resistance, Rebellion & Revolution | A Libyan Artist in Exile — Hasan ‘Alsatoor’ Dhaimish (1955–2016)

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 11: Future of Chinese PSC’s in Central Asia

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 10: Decoding Russian Private Military Security Companies

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 9: From Private Security to Cybersecurity: When Virtual Threats Become Real Risks

[Book Launch] Vision or Mirage: Saudi Arabia at the Crossroads

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 8: Regulation and Accountability of Private Military in the Eyes of International Law

Renewable Energy Initiatives in the GCC: Status and Outlook

[MEI Salon Series] Stories of Hope from Iraq

ME 101 Closing Session: The Centrality of Central Asia

[Prominent Speaker Series] SCO: An Important Factor in Ensuring Stability and Sustainable Development in Eurasia

ME101 Lecture #10: Religion and Political Islam in the Middle East and Its Impact on Our Region

2020 S R Nathan Distinguished Lecture

ME101 Lecture #09: The Challenge Beyond Economics | Women and Youth – A Force for Change

Arab Public Opinion – Ignore it at your Peril

[Boots off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 7: United Nations Working Group on Mercenaries

ME101 Lecture #08: The Challenge Beyond Economics | Climate Change in a Desert

US Elections/Foreign Policy on Middle East

Iran-China Relations: Separating Fact from Fiction

Israel's Relationship with the Arab World

ME 101 Lecture #06: The Politics of Economic Reform

Mercenaries or Private Military Contractors? Privatising the State Monopoly of Violence from the Middle East and Beyond

What Next for Israel and the Gulf States?

ME 101 Lecture #05: Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | Israel – More than Just Palestine

ME101 Lecture #04 Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | The US and its Allies

Build a Connection with Arab Culture with Ms Zeinab Hendawi

ME101 Lecture #03: Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | China - Can the Dragon Tame the Middle East or Will The Middle East Tame the Dragon?

ME101 Lecture #02: Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East | Iran, Turkey, Russia

[MEI Salon] Selling Out? Fighting Over Art in Syria (Past and Present)

ME 101 Opening Session | Developments in the Middle East: Why Singapore Should Care

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 6: The Rise of Drones

“Palestinian Refugees in International Law” Book Launch

The Japanese View on Co-operation between Middle East and Asia in a post Covid-19 Environment

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 5: China’s Private Security and Anti-Piracy

[MEI Salon Series] Travel Blog with Ms Mandy Tay

Gulf–Asia Relations within the Changing Global Order

Qatar Blockade: Is A Solution At Hand?

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 4: Returning Foreign Fighters a Growing Threat?

Middle East–Asia Energy Relations: The GCC Outlook and its Implications for Asia

Dawat in the Time of Corona: Islam and Pious Sovereignty in the Tablighi Jamaat

[Political Economy] Book Discussion on Iran and Saudi Arabia: Taming a Chaotic Conflict

[Book Talk] Inside the Minds of Young Saudi Men

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 3: The US Private Military Stance in the Middle East

Dissecting and Unpacking the United Arab Emirates’ Foreign Policy

Stories from the Wandering Wasp: Travel Tales with Juvena Huang

Security and Maritime Conflicts in the South China Sea

[Book Discussion] How Saudi Money Changed the Muslim World

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 2: Transparent and Accountable Private Military and Security Companies

[Political Economy] The Oil Price Collapse and Its Implications for Gulf Economies

[Boots Off the Ground: Security in Transition in the Middle East and Beyond] Episode 1: New Rules of War | Durable Disorder

MEI Annual Conference 2020: Speech by HE Dr Ahmad Belhoul Al Falasi

MEI Annual Conference 2020: Third Keynote Speech by Education Minister Ong Ye Kung

MEI Annual Conference 2020: "What is the East Asian Experience?" by Prof Ezra F Vogel

MEI Annual Conference 2020: First Keynote Speech by HE Nabil Fahmy

MEI Annual Conference 2020: Speech by GOH SM Tharman Shanmugaratnam

Beating the Odds Together: 50 Years of Singapore-Israel Ties - Remarks by HE Sagi Karni

Beating the Odds Together: 50 Years of Singapore-Israel Ties - Opening Address by Mr George Yeo

Iran’s Factional Politics: Upcoming Elections and Foreign Policy Implications

Rentier Islamism: Explaining the Role of the Muslim Brotherhood in the Gulf

The Israel Factor in US–China Relations

ME 101: Economic Reforms and Change in the Middle East

2019 S R Nathan Distinguished Lecture

ME 101: Rise and Fall of Neo-Ottoman Turkey

ME 101: Prospects for a Two-State Solution to the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict

Legal Aspects of Maritime Piracy in the Middle East

ME 101: The New Spectrum of Islamism in Malaysia and Indonesia

Wahhabism in the World: The Geopolitics of Saudi Arabia’s Religious Soft Power

ME 101: Interlacing of the Middle East with South-east Asia

ME 101: Geopolitical Competition in the Middle East

ME 101: The Syrian Refugee Crisis

ME 101: Developments in the Middle East

The US and Iran: On a Collision Course? Keynote Address by HE MJ Akbar

The US and Iran: On a Collision Course? Keynote Address by HE Dr Kazem Sajjadpour

The US and Iran: On a Collision Course? Keynote Address by The Hon Richard Armitage

Fake News, Twitter Bots, and the Weaponisation of Social Media in the Arabic-Speaking Middle East

Which Jerusalem? Israel's Little-Known Master Plans and Their Impact on Palestinian Lives in Jerusalem

Social Changes in Jerusalem 1949-1967

Jerusalem: A Many-Bordered City

What Chinese Leaders Talk About When They Talk About Middle East Security

Spectres of Colonial Pasts Haunting Logistical Landscapes

Transnational Connections of Muslim Movements in Thailand

India’s Pivot to the Gulf under Modi

The Chagos Islands and the Law of Self-Determination