State-led Change in Qatar in the Wake of Arab Spring: Monarchical Country, Democratic Stance?

Abstract

This article attempts to analyze the impact of current international and regional dynamics on Qatar’s foreign policy during Arab Spring with a special focus on the period from 2011 to 2013 coincided with former Emir Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani’s leadership. Firstly, this study intends to comprehend Qatar’s inconsistencies and contradictions both in domestic and foreign policy by giving importance to the leading concern of Qatar, namely, the regime survival, and its visible reflections on Qatar’s regional and domestic stance. Subsequently, the article focuses on explaining the shifting position of Qatar toward Arab Spring in a different way, that is, through the concept of state-led change and the reasons behind how a tiny and monarchic country could adopt seemingly active role along with democratic discourse, albeit selective and conditional, toward the people’s uprisings between 2011 and 2013.