- 31 May 2023
Middle East Institute Annual Conference 2023
About the Annual Conference
The return of great power competition after the post-Cold War lull does not mean that regions like the Middle East or South-east Asia are solely defined by it. In the past decade, the rise of the US-China rivalry coincided with the growing ambitions of Middle Eastern powers – Turkey, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, or the UAE – to dictate the terms of their own foreign policies.
When considering Russia’s invasion of Ukraine or China’s forays in the Middle East, the traditional partners of Washington in Riyadh, Tel Aviv, or Abu Dhabi opted for calculated ambiguity, rather than full endorsement of the West’s position. In other words, Middle East states are seeking more and more not to align themselves along the lines of great power competition, but rather want to use the competition for leverage to satisfy their interests.
The conjunction of this return to great power competition at the global level with the rising ambitions of Middle East states at regional level has consequences in all sectors of international affairs.
This year’s MEI Annual Conference will take stock of these ongoing trends, unpack them, and examine the future outlook for the Middle East, and its implications for Singapore.
The conference will be opened by Singapore’s Minister for Law and Minister for Home Affairs, Mr K. Shanmugam.
This event will be conducted both in-person and online via Zoom on Wednesday, 31 May from 9.30am to 5.30pm (SGT). The event is free, and open to all. However, registration is compulsory.
For participants joining us via zoom, please register here.
Please click here for conference programme.
Image caption: Chinese President Xi Jinping (right) shakes hands with Saudi Deputy Crown Prince and Minister of Defense Mohammed Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to the G20 Summit on Sep 4, 2016 in Hangzhou, China. (Photo by Salma Bashir Motiwala)
About the Speakers
Mr K. Shanmugam was admitted to the Singapore Bar as an advocate and solicitor in 1985 and went into private practice. He became one of the senior partners and head of litigation and dispute resolution at Allen & Gledhill LLP. In 1998, he was appointed a senior counsel of the Supreme Court of Singapore at the age of 38, one of the youngest lawyers to be so appointed.
Mr Shanmugam had a successful practice and was consistently recognised in international publications as one of the top litigation, arbitration and insolvency counsel in Asia and Singapore. He has also acted for senior government leaders in Singapore.
Prior to accepting public office, Mr Shanmugam served in various committees and boards, including the Advisory Board of the Faculty of Law; the Raffles Institution Board of Governors; the Media Development Authority and Sembawang Corporation Industries Ltd (a company listed on the Singapore Exchange). He was also president of the Singapore Indian Development Association (SINDA) from 2002 to 2009.
In 2008, he was appointed a Cabinet Minister. He is now the Minister for Home Affairs and the Minister for Law.
Event Details
Orchard Hotel Singapore
Level 3 Ballroom 1
442 Orchard Rd, Singapore 238879
2) Online via Zoom
[Please register via RED LINK on the left for Zoom participants.]
