Orient Research Centre

Orient Research Centre

Orient Research Centre's logo
Motto	Think Tank
Formation	2011
Type	Decision Making Support Think Tank
Headquarters	Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Location	Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
General Director	Samir Altaqi[1]
Website	http://www.orientresearchcentre.com/

The Orient Research Centre (ORC) is a think tank based in Dubai that focuses on risks and geopolitical issues in the Persian Gulf and the MENA region.

Background

ORC was first established in Syria as a decision-making support platform that worked for the Syrian government, then it was closed due to political reasons in 2010. Later in mid-2011, it was formed in the heart of the United Arab Emirates to support agencies and governments in the decision-making phase. The centre rarely publishes its researches due to confidentiality reasons, however, there are many blogs and other sister-centers in which it releases the publication through, such as the Middle East Briefing, Ixyria and many others.^[2] The Orient Research Centre's slogan is THINK ARABIC, and in other words those who conduct researches for ORC are Arabs and they give their point of view of what's happening around the world as Arabs.^[3] ORC holds from 5 to 8 closed seminars per year in which the subject varies depending on the needs of the political momentum. It also relies on conducting internal workshops and brainstorming sessions to analyse to understand and to predict to prevent.

Current Programs

The Orient Research Center works on the following research programs:

• Program on the Gulf Cooperation Council nations (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen).
• Program on the Arab Neighborhood of the Middle East (Iraq, Egypt, Syria, and Lebanon).
• Program on the Regional Neighborhood of the Middle East (Turkey, Iran and Israel).
• Program on the Relevant Political and Economic International Environment concerning the region (United States of America, Russia, Germany, France and the United Kingdom).^[4]

Publications

ORC publishes several types of researches and policy papers such as the Middle East Briefing, Mashhad, Middle East Media, Washington Alleys, Ixyria, and other confidential monthly reports and annual yearbooks.

Middle East Media

A daily informative and analytical report. It monitors all the research studies, policy papers and reports of other research centers and international and regional newspapers and compact them in a compact analytical summary.^[5]

Middle East Briefing

A weekly publication of the Washington DC's branch of ORC. It releases four articles each week to help understand what is going on in the Middle East and how it is affecting the International system as a whole. It is also distinguished by its exclusive news and information that the articles maintain to provide to readers straight from the decision making rooms.^[6]

MASHHAD

A weekly report that covers the most important news and events to analyse the momentum and their aftermaths on Arab States of the Persian Gulf and the MENA region.^[7]

Ixyria

A weekly publication of Gaziantep's branch of ORC. It is a news magazine that covers four different stories on the Syrian conflict.^[8]

Washington Corridors

A report that is published by the Washington DC's branch of ORC, every 2 weeks. It summarizes and analyzes all the conferences and workshops that are held by Washington's based research centers.^[9]

Internship Programs

Yearly, the Centre offers an opportunity for Political Science students and scholars to get involved and work with ORC experts and researchers on topics related to and in cooperation with relevant organisations and accredited institutions.

ORC Globally

The Orient Research Centre headquarter is in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The centre has two other branches in Gazi Antep, Turkey and in Washington DC, USA

References