morten valbjorn | Aarhus University (original) (raw)

Papers by morten valbjorn

Edinburgh University Press eBooks, Jul 19, 2011

Oxford University Press eBooks, Feb 1, 2016

chapter in Tanja A. Börzel & Thomas Risse (eds.) Oxford Handbook of Comparative Regionali... more chapter in Tanja A. Börzel & Thomas Risse (eds.) Oxford Handbook of Comparative Regionalism. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Routledge eBooks, Apr 5, 2023

Politica, 2014

Denne artikel sætter fokus på den nye engelske skole og dens revitaliseredeforskningsprogram, her... more Denne artikel sætter fokus på den nye engelske skole og dens revitaliseredeforskningsprogram, herunder fem centrale bidrag: (1) relanceringen af verdenssamfundsdimensionenmed fokus på ikke-statslige aktører, (2) revisionen afsondringen mellem pluralistiske og solidaristiske internationale samfund, (3) differentieringenaf det internationale samfund til to niveauer, det globale og detregionale, (4) videreudviklingen af skolens forståelse af internationale institutionerog (5) den større metodiske bre dde. Artiklen argumenterer for en fortsat udviklingaf anvendelsesorienteret middle-range teori, herunder både fortolkende ogforklarende analysestrategier.

The Review of Faith & International Affairs, 2020

Oxford University Press eBooks, Jun 23, 2022

Since the Arab uprisings, new dynamics of insecurity have cleaved the MENA, tugging at the concep... more Since the Arab uprisings, new dynamics of insecurity have cleaved the MENA, tugging at the conceptual premise in how this regional subsystem of interstate relations—that is, Middle East international relations (IR)—operates in an era of globalization. Interfacing with conventional IR theories, the chapter shows the retreat of American hegemony as a historical rupture from a unipolar world order. It stresses that new alliances and rivalries, from the Syrian-Iranian coalition to the Saudi-Qatari split, do not comport with existing assumptions for how states should behave when attempting to balance power and project their interests. Emergent conflicts such as proxy wars and sectarianized disputes force us to rethink the origins and duration of violence. All of this makes the study of security itself, long the organizing theme of classical IR, a loaded task. Events in the MENA are teaching theorists to move beyond Western-centric views about what makes states fundamentally secure or insecure.

Der 27. Dezember 2009 markiert den ersten Jahrestag des Beginns des Gazakriegs. Der bis dato letz... more Der 27. Dezember 2009 markiert den ersten Jahrestag des Beginns des Gazakriegs. Der bis dato letzte Akt im israelisch-palästinensischen Gewaltkonflikt verdeutlicht ei-ne Entwicklung, die weit über den kleinen Küstenstreifen am Mittelmeer hinausgeht. Regionalpolitisch verdeutlicht er vor allem die gestiegene Bedeutung von arabisch-is-lamistischen Organisationen wie Hamas und Hisbollah und untermauert die generel-le Kräfteverschiebung der nahöstlichen Ordnung zulasten traditioneller Akteure wie Ägypten und Saudi-Arabien. Analyse Der Gazakrieg 2008/09 manifestiert den aktuellsten Ausdruck des Wandels regionaler Ordnung im Nahen Osten, der sich bereits im Kontext der Kriege im Irak nach dem Jahr 2003 sowie im Libanon im Jahr 2006 festmachen ließ. Zu den grundlegenden Ordnungsstrukturen im heutigen Nahen Osten konkurrie-ren liberale, konfessionalistische und neorealistische Perspektiven. Diese stimmen jedoch darin überein, dass dem arabischen Nationalismus regionalpolitisch gegen-wärtig ...

International Studies Perspectives, 2020

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>Can International Relations (IR) as i... more <jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>Can International Relations (IR) as it is taught in the Arab world be said to be an "American social science" or is it taught differently in different places? The forum addresses this question through an exploration of what and how scholars at Arab universities are teaching IR and how institutional, historical, and linguistic, as well as political and individual factors shape classroom dynamics in the Arab world. This forum attempts to bring the classroom into the Global/Post-Western debate by showing how IR can be taught differently in different places with a focus on a region under-represented in IR debates: the Arab world. The essays, exhibiting diversity in pedagogical strategies and theoretical perspectives, provide a window into how the "international" is perceived and taught locally by teachers and students in various Arab contexts. While the influence from the American "core" of the discipline is obvious, the forum documents how the theoretical and conceptual foundations of IR based on Western perspectives and history do not travel intact. The essays collectively provide evidence of different kinds of IRs not just across but also within regions and show that studying pedagogy can become a way to study how disciplinary IR varies contextually.</jats:p>

The Crisis of Citizenship in the Arab World, 2017

Valbjørn, Morten (2017). "Like But Not Same As... - Arab Citizenship and the Jordanian E... more Valbjørn, Morten (2017). "Like But Not Same As... - Arab Citizenship and the Jordanian Experience", pp. 175-202 in Roel Meijer & Nils A. Butenschon (eds.) The Crisis of Citizenship in the Arab World Leiden: Brill.

Nations and Nationalism, 2019

Politik, 2012

A prominent theme in the current debate on the implications of the Arab Revolts revolves around t... more A prominent theme in the current debate on the implications of the Arab Revolts revolves around the questions about whether we are witnessing the emergence of a truly new Middle East in a ‘transition to de- mocracy’, or whether the region is still stuck in a ‘transition to nowhere’ similar to past decades. Based on a critique of both of these views, the article suggests that the Arab world should instead be perceived as being in a ‘transition to somewhere’ marked by a multi-level repoliticization. Against this background, we explore how this ‘return of politics’ in Arab societies is re ected above, below and beyond the level of the regime and how this can be grasped by an ‘upgraded’ version of the postdemocratization approach to Arab politics.

International Studies Review, 2017

Edinburgh University Press eBooks, Jul 19, 2011

Oxford University Press eBooks, Feb 1, 2016

Routledge eBooks, Apr 5, 2023

Politica, 2014

The Review of Faith & International Affairs, 2020

Oxford University Press eBooks, Jun 23, 2022

International Studies Perspectives, 2020

The Crisis of Citizenship in the Arab World, 2017

Nations and Nationalism, 2019

Politik, 2012

International Studies Review, 2017

APSA MENA Newsletter Issue 5, Fall 2018, 2018

To what degree should the way IR scholars in the Arab region study and teach IR be shaped by thei... more To what degree should the way IR scholars in the Arab region study and teach IR be shaped by their geopolitical location and relationship to IR in North American and Europe? On 21 and 22 June 2018, IR scholars from across the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, and North America met at a workshop in Beirut to debate these questions and ongoing efforts to make way for more voices from the region and scholarship about the region in global IR debates.

APSA MENA Workshops: Alumni e-Newsletter | Issue 3, Fall 2017.

Middle East Policy, 2024

The Gaza war between Israel and Hamas marks the end of the long decade after the Arab uprisings. ... more The Gaza war between Israel and Hamas marks the end of the long decade after the Arab uprisings. In this paper, we explore how the conflict has altered the regional political landscape in the Middle East, which bears similarities to the pre-2011 dynamics but includes new elements. On the one hand, the war has taken the region "forward to the past" by revitalizing "Palestine" as a central issue, accentuating the so-called Axis of Resistance, and increasing the prominence of the regimes-people divide in Middle Eastern countries. On the other, the war has generated novel repercussions. "Palestine" today has broader global resonance than previous Arab and Islamic framings. And the regional alliance structure has been altered, with the "moderate Arab camp" fading and new actors, such as the Houthis in Yemen, rising and joining the resistance axis. As we demonstrate, the Gaza war is a critical juncture whose ramifications for both regional and domestic politics in the Middle East will reverberate for years to come. The October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel and Israel's ensuing war on Gaza mark the end of the long decade following the Arab uprisings in the Middle East. While there is broad consensus that the conflict represents a break with the regional dynamics of the last decade, the nature of this change is the subject of debate among scholars, practitioners, and policy makers. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Mediterranean Politics, Feb 18, 2021

To what extent has the study of sectarianism in the Middle East made any progress in the first de... more To what extent has the study of sectarianism in the Middle East made any progress in the first decade after the Arab uprisings? Based on an analysis of three aspects of the study of sectarianism – on how to conceptualize, grasp and explain sectarianism – the article shows that the sectarianism debate hardly has provided much certainty, agreement or any firm conclusions. However, the study of sectarianism has
progressed in terms of greater conceptual, methodological
and theoretical sophistication. Thereby, the study of sectarianism resembles a broader trend in Middle East Studies towards moving beyond the classic ‘trenches’ in the Area Studies Controversy.

International Studies Perspectives, Dec 17, 2020

Can International Relations (IR) as it is taught in the Arab world be said to be an “American soc... more Can International Relations (IR) as it is taught in the Arab world be said to be an “American social science” or is it taught differently in different places? The forum addresses this question through an exploration of what and how scholars at Arab universities are teaching IR and how institutional, historical, and linguistic, as well as political and individual factors shape classroom dynamics in the Arab world. This forum attempts to bring the classroom into the Global/Post-Western debate by showing how IR can be taught differently in different places with a focus on a region under-represented in IR debates: the Arab world. The essays, exhibiting diversity in pedagogical strategies and theoretical perspectives, provide a window into how the “international” is perceived and taught locally by teachers and students in various Arab contexts. While the influence from the American “core” of the discipline is obvious, the forum documents how the theoretical and conceptual foundations of IR based on Western perspectives and history do not travel intact. The essays collectively provide evidence of different kinds of IRs not just across but also within regions and show that studying pedagogy can become a way to study how disciplinary IR varies contextually.

APSA MENA Politics Newsletter, 2020

Do identities matter for explaining the behavior of Islamist actors in war zones? If yes, then wh... more Do identities matter for explaining the behavior of Islamist actors in war zones? If yes, then what is the relative importance of identities as opposed to the structural context? Is it necessary to pay attention to the "content" of identities or can different identities basically be treated as alike? To address these questions, it can be useful to revisit similar debates in other parts of the social sciences, including International Relations, civil war studies and (critical) terrorism studies. From those well-developed literatures, we highlight four distinct ways of framing discussions on identity politics which are relevant to consider in the present context.

POMEPS Studies, 2020

Does a shared agreement about the importance of challenging sectarianism necessarily translate in... more Does a shared agreement about the importance of challenging sectarianism necessarily translate into much consensus as for how to go about it and do some of these efforts carry their own potential pitfalls, which deserve attention in discussions about how to promote inclusion and reconciliation in deeply divided societies?....

The Routledge Handbook to the Middle East and North African State and States System (eds Hinnebusch & Gani), London: Routledge ., 2020

Nations and Nationalism, 2020

This meta‐study examines the nature of past and current theoretically informed debates on sectari... more This meta‐study examines the nature of past and current theoretically informed debates on sectarian politics in the Middle East and identifies the biggest challenges and possible directions for the future study of sectarianism. Contrary to the conventional narrative about a “sectarian journey” torn between a flawed primordialist and instrumentalist approach in between which a new superior “third way” is needed, the article shows that both primordialism and instrumentalism are rare in the academic debate on sectarianism, quite similar to the broader ethnicity/nationalism debate. However, this has not resulted in a “new conventional wisdom” about how to proceed. Thus, the article identifies a cacophony of suggestions for how the much aspired‐to third way should look like. Against this background, the article suggests that it is time to go beyond the ritual calls to “get beyond primordialism and instrumentalism.” Instead, it is time to devote more attention to examining the multiple already existing suggestions for “third ways”. Rather than highlighting a single third way as superior, the article contributes to this move in two ways: it shows how the various third ways can be grouped into three “beyond strategies” (the New Saviour, the Baby and the Bathwater, and the LEGO eclectic strategies) and outlines a number of meta‐theoretical issues to consider in order to move the debate forward.

APSA MENA Politics Section Newsletter, 2019

Studies in Ethnicity and Nationalism, 2019

The purpose of this Special Issue is to examine the nature, causes, and consequences of the Middl... more The purpose of this Special Issue is to examine the nature, causes, and consequences of the Middle East's current sectarian surge. Specifically, how might sectarianism and regime formation/type be inter‐related? The evidence from this specific analysis will also address the broader concern of whether the Arab uprisings have given rise to a qualitatively new kind of Middle Eastern politics, such that it makes sense to speak about a ‘new Middle East’. In addition, the Special Issue touches on whether the study of regime formation in a sectarian context requires distinct analytical tools, or whether we can stick to the already existing approaches from the (post)democratization tradition. In order to provide a theoretical context within which the contributors locate their research focus, this introductory article will first provide an overview of two prominent debates in Middle East politics in recent years, which together constitute what we coin as the regime formation/sectarianism nexus.

Studies in Ethnicity and Nationalism, 2019

Shia/Sunni sectarianism figures prominently in post-Arab uprising claims that the Middle East is ... more Shia/Sunni sectarianism figures prominently in post-Arab uprising claims that the Middle East is witnessing a darker kind of authoritarianism drawing on exclusionary and xenophobic forms of identity politics. This article explores whether sectarianism per se is associated with a distinct form of identity politics or if authoritarian techniques involving the use of the ‘sectarian card’ should be subsumed under a broader category of authoritarian identity politics involving the inclusion or exclusion of social groups based on identity and implemented with varying degrees of repression. The article shows how Brubaker's analytical distinction between a ‘diacritical’ and ‘normative ordering power’ understanding of religious identities gives rise to different expectations in regard to whether sectarianism leads to different and more violent forms of repression than other forms of identity politics. Against this background, the article compares authoritarian identity politics in Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, and Egypt, which all differ from each other both in terms of the importance of a Shia/Sunni distinction compared to other identity cleavages, and also as regards the intensity and level of the regime's response to the Arab uprisings. From this comparison five general lessons about sectarianism and authoritarian identity politics can be drawn.

POMEPS Studies 34: Shifting Global Politics and the Middle East , 2019

The overall theme for this collection concerns the question about how changes in international st... more The overall theme for this collection concerns the question
about how changes in international structures at both the
global and regional levels have and will affect Middle East
international relations. One way to approach this question
is by engaging in a discussion about whether the Middle
East is in a transition from a post-Cold War ‘American
order’ to some kind of ‘post-American’ (dis)order, where
not only regional powers such as Iran and Saudi Arabia
but also non-Western great powers such as Russia and
China aspire for a larger role in regional politics. In the
following, a related yet somewhat different approach will
be adopted. I will focus less on international relations
than on the academic field of IR and discuss what these
changes ‘out there’ might mean for the study of Middle
East international relations ‘in here.’ In the following, I will
do this by (re)visiting two debates in the scholarship on
(Middle East) international relations.
see also https://pomeps.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/POMEPS_Studies_34_Web.pdf

Abstract Forestillingen om et sekterisk – eller “sekteriseret” – Mellemøsten, hvor en modsætning ... more Abstract Forestillingen om et sekterisk – eller “sekteriseret” – Mellemøsten, hvor en modsætning mellem shia- og sunnimuslimer – eller shia- og sunniislam – skulle udgøre en central konfliktlinje i regionens politiske liv, har figureret prominent i de seneste års debat om, hvad der vil kendetegne et såkaldt “nyt Mellemøsten”. Samtidig med – eller måske netop fordi – sekterisk politik er blevet et sådan “hot
topic”, er det imidlertid også åbenbart, at debatten fortsat er præget af stor forvirring og uenighed. Denne artikel identificerer nogle af de vigtigste positioner i denne flerdimensionelle diskussion om sekterisk politik i et “nyt Mellemøsten”. Det gælder ikke blot det helt grundlæggende spørgsmål om, hvad sekterisme faktisk er, og om det overhovedet giver mening at tale om shia-sunnisekterisme, men også om, hvor udbredt og ny den “nye sekterisme” egentlig er, og hvordan vi kan “observere” den. Som det vil fremgå, deler vandene sig ligeledes, når det kommer til spørgsmålet om, hvordan man bedst kan forklare sekterisk politiks (voksende) betydning i Mellemøsten, og hvilke implikationer denne “sekterisering” synes at have for en række forskellige aspekter ved mellemøstlig politik.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The notion about a sectarian – or “sectarianized” – Middle East, where a divide between Shia and Sunni Muslims – or Shia and Sunni Islam – constitutes a major cleavage in politics, has become a “hot topic” in recent years’ debate about the nature of a so-called “new Middle East”. While it is generally agreed that sectarian politics has become a factor in the Middle East today, it is at the same time obvious that the debate on sectarianism is marked by considerable confusion and disagreement. Against this background, this article provides an overview of this multidimensional debate by identifying and discussing some of the prominent positions to the currently most contested issues on sectarian politics. In addition to the basic questions about how to conceptualize and observe sectarianism, these concern the questions about where and how sectarianism matters in today’s Middle East, why the region has experienced a “sectarian surge” and what the consequences of this “sectarianization” will be for various aspects of Middle East politics.

Orient, 2018

Unpacking a puzzling case: On how the Yemeni conflict became sectarianised Yemen constitutes in m... more Unpacking a puzzling case: On how the Yemeni conflict became sectarianised Yemen constitutes in many ways a puzzling case in the broader debate on Shia/Sunni sectarianism in a ‘new Middle East.’ Contrary to what one might expect from its demography, it has historically not been a hotbed for sectarian conflicts, and against this background, it is surprising how sectarianism has become one – of many – dimensions in the Yemeni conflict since the Arab uprisings. By drawing on analytical tools from the broader debate on sectarianism, which are used as complementary layers of explanation, the article shows how it is necessary to examine the complex interplay between drivers and actors placed at regional, state, regime and society levels in order to provide a nuanced understanding of how and why this sectarianisation took place

LSE Middle East Centre - Blog, 2018

The study of the current (re)emergence and evolution of sectarianism in the Middle East has given... more The study of the current (re)emergence and evolution of sectarianism in the Middle East has given rise to much debate in academia, but maybe for the wrong reasons. While much energy has been spent bashing primordialist and instrumentalist approaches, in their ‘pure’ versions they appear far less prominent in the academic part of the debate than often claimed. So, instead of ‘beating dead horses’, it appears to be time to turn attention to how an agreement about the need to get beyond the primordialist Scylla and Instrumentalist Charybdis does not have to translate into much consensus about the specific coordinates for the much-aspired third-way-in-between course. At least three different overall ‘beyond strategies’ for a ‘third way’ can be identified, which may lead the future study of sectarianism in different directions and this should be the real debate!

The field of IR has been described as an “‘inter’-type discipline,” in the sense that it is devot... more The field of IR has been described as an “‘inter’-type discipline,” in the sense that it is devoted to studying the interactions of different kinds of international actors. However, despite the fact that the discipline has never been blind vis-à-vis the “in-between” (or relational) dimension of the subject matter, much of the focus in recent years’ discussions has, in various ways, been directed to the international in IR-theory. While acknowledging that this has alerted the discipline about the prevalent Western-centrism in much IR-theory and how it helped foster an awareness of the diversity of IR-communities around the globe, the present forum takes its point of departure in the view that in order to make the academic field of IR-theory worthy of its own name, it is now time to move the debate about global IR a step further and connect it to what has been unearthed in recent decades’ mapping of IR around the globe. To succeed in this endeavor, this forum suggests that it is necessary to both refocus and recalibrate the “inter” in IR-theory. Thus, in addition to bringing attention back to the inter-national dimension of IR-theory, it is also necessary to examine the conditions that determine how relevant actors (e.g., scholars and practitioners) interact in producing knowledge about “the international,” that is, the forms, formats, and foci of intellectual interactions. In this introduction, we will first elaborate the background for this call in order to explain why it is necessary and how it relates to, but also aims at transcending, the discussions about (post)-Western IR-theory in recent decades. We conclude with a sketch of how a recalibration of the “inter” in IR-theory involves a range of dimensions to be taken into consideration and how these are examined in the various contributions to this forum.

Bern [etc.], Peter Lang, October 2019, 226 p. (Global Politics and Security ; 5), ISBN 978-3-0343-3876-9; 978-3-0343-3891-2 (pdf); 978-3-0343-3892-9 (ePub), 2019

In this edited book, several leading scholars address a number of security-related issues, all co... more In this edited book, several leading scholars address a number of security-related issues, all connected to one main research question: What (in)security means from the perspective of people living in the Middle East and North Africa? In doing so, the contributors shed light on the contours of a stable and legitimate order that responds to the needs of the peoples in the region, on what history tells us about the ongoing debates on security and stability in the region, and, last but not least, on «human security», which encompasses the dimension of human rights, political rights and social/economic security.

Volume produced in the frame of the New-Med Research Network.