On November 1-3, 2010, the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences hosted a scientific conference "Cultural and historical traditions, social and political transformation, conflicts and interaction in the region of the Middle East (Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, ethnic Kurdistan)". The conference was organized by the Center for Near and Middle Eastern Studies of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences with the invitation of scientists from abroad, scientific and educational institutions in Moscow and other Russian cities. The conference was opened by the Director of the Institute of Oriental Studies V. V. Naumkin. In his opening remarks, he stressed the importance of the conference, which is held regularly every two years. Unlike previous conferences, he noted, the program of this forum is more diverse in subject matter, including discussion of cultural and historical traditions in the Muslim East, as well as various aspects (economy, demography, gender issues, etc.) of the current stage of its transformation. As V. V. Naumkin emphasized, issues related to the state of an extremely important region in geopolitical terms, which actively interacts with neighboring areas, were put up for discussion. A special aspect of this interaction is the migration of immigrants from this region to Western Europe, where the process of their cultural and social adaptation is very difficult, slow and painful. At the first session of the conference devoted to the current stage of socio-economic evolution, six presentations were made. The report of the head of the Center for the Study of the Near and Middle East V. Ya. Belokrenitsky "Divergent trajectories of development of the states of the region, internal faults, geopolitical consequences" was devoted to the problem of development of the states that make up the region. The speaker noted that while in the first years after the end of World War II all the countries of the reg ... Read more