Latifa Abdullah Al Saud is an M.A. candidate in the Department of Political Science at Columbia University. She specializes in International Relations and her research interests focus on the political factors of Japan-Middle East relations. Ms. Al Saud graduated summa cum laude from Pepperdine University with a Bachelor of Arts in International and Political Studies. She was a research assistant and translator to Dr. Joel Fetzer in the Political Science Department and completed an undergraduate thesis in 2016 on Saudi Arabia’s policy toward the Iranian nuclear weapon program. Before beginning graduate school at Columbia University, she also interned at the Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations where she was assigned to the First Committee of the UN General Assembly in New York.
Japan’s Development of the Jericho Agricultural Industrial Park (JAIP): Policy and Politics
The Japanese International Cooperation Agency’s (JICA) development of the Jericho Agricultural Industrial Park (JAIP) in the Jordan Valley is a key part of Japan’s policy of proactive contributions to Middle East peace. A mixture of both economic and diplomatic efforts, the Park is one way for Japan to balance its relationships and further its long-term strategic footprint in the region.
