Georgetown University: School of Foreign Service in Qatar

Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF) has awarded more than $124,000 USD to two faculty members from Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar (SFS-Qatar) to study Qatar’s role in conflict resolution. Mehran Kamrava, the Director for Center for International and Regional Studies (CIRS), and Katja Niethammer, a former post-doctoral fellow at CIRS, will collaborate to examine Saudi Arabian and Qatari foreign policy in conflict resolution in their research titled, “Conflict Resolution by Qatar and Saudi Arabia: New Roles in Regional Diplomacy”.

Starting in the summer of 2009, this research will expand over two years and shed light on two countries’ diplomatic efforts in regional politics. Although Saudi Arabia has always had a role in regional affairs, given its size and historical prominence, the engagement of a small country like Qatar in conflict resolution efforts is rather unique. “Qatar has been playing an increasingly influential role in the international relations of the Middle East as an honest broker in regional conflicts,” noted Kamrava.

However, the literature on Qatar’s foreign policy is extremely limited, and this research will help to fill this gap. “Most scholars of international relations have overlooked the role and influence of small states in the international politics of the Middle East,” said Kamrava. “Within Middle Eastern studies, scholars have traditionally focused on larger states,” Kamrava continued.

“Very little empirically grounded research has been done on [Qatar’s] foreign policies in general, and even more so on … conflict resolution,” Niethammer said. This research will aim to assess Qatar’s institutional capacities in regional conflict mediation, sustainability of its efforts, and opportunities of cooperation with external actors, such as the USA and EU.

Kamrava and Neithammer will conduct their research through a mix of case studies, literature review and qualitative interviews. “We will first have to do sound empirical groundwork, and then we will embed our findings in the wider theoretical debates in International Relations,” commented Niethammer.

The case studies will involve examining Saudi Arabia’s policies on TAIF efforts of 1989 and Mecca Accords of 2007, along with Qatar’s strategy with Doha Agreement of 2008 and its role between Huthy rebels and Yemeni government. Along with extensive literature review in relation to these mediation efforts, the researchers will also interview officials who have been directly involved in these negotiations, including ruling government representatives, intellectuals shaping foreign policy, journalists, and other decision-makers in Palestine, Lebanon, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

The research findings are expected to be circulated through various avenues. The researchers plan on broadly disseminating the results by producing at least two journal articles on the topic of Qatari and Saudi conflict mediation. Additionally, CIRS will publish an occasional paper on the topic. Researchers also plan to conduct series of seminars in Doha and Riyadh to share their research findings with policy makers, academics, and other interested parties.

“This innovative study on Qatar's regional role and regional policy mirrors SFS-Qatar's commitment to enhance knowledge of local politics, an area which is remarkably understudied. We also intend to offer workshops to SFS-Qatar and other Education City students. This, we hope, will directly benefit our research environment,” said Niethammer.