The Geopolitics of The Horn of Africa in a Changing World Order – Introduction to the Thematic Issue of the Hungarian Journal of African Studies (HJAS)

Abstract

This thematic issue of the Hungarian Journal of African Studies aims to contribute to debates about the Horn of Africa region and the world order by placing the role of the region's states at the center of analysis. Instead of treating the region merely as an arena of great power rivalry or a chessboard for powers outside the region, the studies in this thematic issue collectively examine how the region's actors interpret, respond to, and shape contemporary geopolitical transformations. Together, they demonstrate that the Horn of Africa has itself become an asymmetric multipolar regional subsystem characterised by overlapping security interests, shifting alliances, contested sovereignty, and multiple external partnerships. Therefore, the issue offers an important correction to traditional analyses that prioritise external intervention while underestimating the strategic calculations of regional governments.