It has been argued that the position of a modern state is contested in the contemporary world. One of the main processes related to the position of the state is that of globalization. The aim of the workshop is to examine influences of globalization on the Middle Eastern statehood in a context where a set of new issues like information society, economic and political integration, new forms of civil society, free trade or environmental problems are challenging the sovereignty and legitimacy of the Middle Eastern state. Globalization refers to those practices which pass national boundaries in order to integrate and connect states, communities and organizations.
Globalization makes the world interconnected in reality and in experience.
The Middle East has faced constant problems regarding stability and legitimacy of state structures. Social, political and economic crises have created continuous and unsolved instability in the Middle East. Disregarding the new political and economic actors which challenge the legitimacy of the state by their demands on democratization or social reforms, the states continue to maintain their executive, legislative and military power. It is important to focus on a variety of consequences of globalization. Keeping this heterogeneity of globalization in mind, issues to be studied are, among others, new political spaces, distribution of power, emergence of new social and political actors, transnational social networks, democratic participation and formation of national identities.