Middle East Policy

Key Documents: CHALLENGES TO DEMOCRATIZATION IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND CENTRAL ASIA Testimony by Michael Kozak, Acting Assistant Secretary Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Bureau Department of State At a hearing entitled: “9/11 Recommendations Implementation Act Oversight, Part 1 -- Oppressors vs. Reformers in the Middle East and Central Asia” Before the Subcommittee on the Middle East and Central Asia House International Relations Committee May 4, 2005 Madame Chairwoman and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for holding this hearing to focus on the status of democracy and human rights in the Middle East and Central Asia. This hearing provides an excellent opportunity for us to affirm our conviction that the people of these regions stand ready to benefit from democracy and liberty, and to acknowledge our support to those who aspire to build democratic institutions of their own. It is not only our moral obligation to promote democracy and respect for human rights around the world, it ...

Fact Sheet: Middle East Partnership Initiative Funds 225 Reform Initiatives State Department fact sheet outlines MEPI programs Since its founding in 2002, the State Department’s Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) has received $293 million to support democratic and economic reform initiatives, educational development and women’s empowerment in the Middle East. Following is a fact sheet outlining MEPI’s projects: U.S. Department of StateBureau of Public AffairsJune 28, 2005 THE MIDDLE EAST PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE:U.S. Support for Freedom and Democracy in the Middle East “Here in the Middle East, that same long hopeful process of democratic change is now beginning to unfold. Millions of people are demanding Freedom for themselves and democracy for their countries.”–Secretary of State Rice, June 20, 2005 MEPI FACTS -- 225 programs in 14 countries and the Palestinian Territories. -- Supporting over 70 civil society organizations from the Middle East. -- Of the total received, 22% incr...

Bush Vows United States Will Defeat Terrorists in Iraq President rules out setting deadline, says number of troops now sufficient President Bush vowed that the United States will not flinch from fighting terrorism in Iraq or from seeing that democracy, prosperity and hope are spread throughout the Middle East. In a speech June 28, Bush said that the sacrifice that the United States is making to bring democracy to Iraq is worthwhile because success in Iraq is vital to U.S. security and to the global cause of freedom. The terrorists, both Iraqi and foreign, "know that as freedom takes root in Iraq, it will inspire millions across the Middle East to claim their liberty as well. And when the Middle East grows in democracy, prosperity, and hope, the terrorists will lose their sponsors, lose their recruits, and lose their hopes for turning that region into a base for attacks on America and our allies around the world," Bush said. The president said the terrorists, despite their ...

In Support of Arab Democracy: Why and How Report of an Independent Task Force In an important initiative, an independent task force issued a significant report “In Support of Arab Democracy: Why and How” sponsored by the council on foreign relations. I endorse this report as a “general frame” considering that there are some points need to be elaborated. These points include but not limited to: - The foreign policy and what means it has to promote democracy in the foreign states, in the current context of the international relations. - The civil society in the Arab states, its role, the engagement with it, the possibility and the way of support. - The prospects of constructing an international systemic effort of promoting democracy in the Middle East with full recognition in the international code. I think that the democracy and human rights have the chance to replace the chaos of the post-cold war international order. This question needs to be reflected on. The previous questions wou...

Article: A trans-Atlantic plan for democracyBy Urban Ahlin, Ronald Asmus, Steven Everts, Jana Hybaskova, Mark Leonard, Michael McFaul , Michael Mertes Originally published in International Herald Tribune , March 14, 2004 This article represents the views of a trans-Atlantic group sponsored by the German Marshall Fund of the United States. It was written by Urban Ahlin, chairman of the Swedish Parliament's foreign affairs committee; Ronald Asmus, of the German Marshall Fund of the United States; Steven Everts, of the Center for European Reform, London; Jana Hybaskova, former Czech ambassador to Kuwait; Mark Leonard, of the Foreign Policy Center, London; Michael McFaul, of the Hoover Institution, Stanford University; and Michael Mertes, of Dimap Consult, Germany. American and European leaders have started to talk about the need to promote greater freedom, justice and democracy in the "Greater Middle East." While Americans see this as the crucial battleground in the war on t...

New Grants To Help Palestinians with Democratic, Economic Reform Middle East Partnership Initiative funding totals more than $2 million The State Department’s Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) has issued three new grants totaling more than $2 million to support democratic institutions and economic training in the West Bank and Gaza, according to a June 28 media note. One project will provide funds to Palestinian television stations to broadcast live sessions of the Palestinian Legislative Council. The other two grants will support entrepreneurship training. Since its founding in 2002, MEPI has received $293 million in funding and sponsored 225 projects throughout the region. These projects aim to support democratic and economic reforms, enhanced educational opportunities and women’s empowerment. Text

Survey Finds Freedom Gap for Women Throughout Middle East First-ever comprehensive study of women's rights in region A study by the independent, nongovernmental organization Freedom House has found that, despite progress in some countries, women in the Middle East continue to suffer discrimination and lack full legal and civil rights, according to a June 24 State Department press release. The Freedom House study -- the first comprehensive, comparative study of women's civil and legal status throughout the Middle East -- was funded by the U.S.-Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI), a presidential initiative that supports economic, political and educational reform in the region. (See related article .) The report, “Women's Rights in the Middle East and North Africa: Citizenship and Justice,” is the culmination of an intensive 20-month-long research process by a team of 40 leading scholars, analysts and women's rights experts primarily from the region, according to the...

Research: Iraq and World order An interesting paper “Iraq and World order” by John Lloyd had been published by the Foreign policy center in London. It discusses the international dimension of the Iraq war and the prospects of the international order in light of the U.S. action of overthrowing the Iraqi regime and the war on terror. Important topic and has a little reflection in the literature of international relations. I will quote the introduction and the last section. It is fully downloadable from the Foreign policy center website. INTRODUCTION The war on terror has opened up new era in world affairs: but the outlines of the new are hazy. There is not just no new order: there is no agreement on what the order should be, or even if it is possible, or desirable. But an attempt to construct a new order will have to be made. And it will have to be made at the same time as the confrontation with Iraq is the order of the day: for only if some new general principles can be glimpsed through...

Bush Lays Out "Strategy for Victory" in Iraq Radio address highlights military, political goals In his weekly radio address June 25, President Bush recalled his June 24 meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jafari at the White House and previewed his scheduled June 28 address to the American people, in which he intends to speak of "our mission in Iraq, why it remains important to our safety here at home, and our two-track strategy for victory." The first track is military, according to the president, in which the United States must "defeat the terrorists and continue helping Iraqis take greater responsibility for defending their freedom" against "terrorists [whose] ... objective is to break the will of America and of the Iraqi people before democracy can take root." Bush said that so far the enemy has not succeeded: "Two years ago, they tried to intimidate the Iraqi Governing Council -- and failed. Last year, they tried to delay the t...

Article: Lessons for Bush's Mideast vision By Anatol Lieven Originally published in the Financial Times on March 1, 2004 There has been a good deal of talk in the US about a parallel between President George W. Bush's "plan" for democratising the greater Middle East and the Helsinki process that contributed to the fall of the Soviet empire. When thinking about western policy and the Muslim world, it does indeed make sense to look for lessons from the cold war - but this is not the right one. The lessons of successful development in the cold war and post-cold-war periods for western policy are threefold. The regimes concerned obviously need to have both the right economic policies and a state strong enough to guide economic development. Second, the west needs to have a strong local nationalism on its side. Third, it has to be prepared to make real economic sacrifices. Democracy as such is not of central importance, though law and social freedom certainly are. After a...

United States Economic Assistance to Egypt: Does it Advance Reform? Testimony before the House International Relations Committee House International Relations CommitteeHearing on "United States Economic Assistance to Egypt: Does it Advance Reform?"June 17, 2004 Testimony of Michele Dunne, Ph.D.Visiting Scholar, Democracy and Rule of Law ProgramThe Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, thank you for inviting me to testify. Having worked on democracy assistance to Egypt during assignments at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo and National Security Council staff and then studied the issue from outside government, I welcome the opportunity to present my thoughts to you. With your permission, I will focus primarily on the impact of American assistance on the prospects for political (versus economic) reform. First, democracy assistance to Egypt can be effective only as part of a coherent policy strategy including active engagement with the Egy...

Article: Double Blow to Mideast Democracy The Washington Post, May 1, 2004 Shibley Telhami , Nonresident Senior Fellow, Saban Center for Middle East Policy Events in Iraq and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict have dealt a fatal blow to the Bush administration's plans for Middle East reform even before they are formally unveiled. These events may come to symbolize the end of democracy as a serious policy objective in the Middle East. Certainly the painful pictures from Iraq a year after the war—including humiliating scenes of abused Iraqi prisoners—have turned that country into a model to be feared and avoided in the eyes of many in the Middle East, and a tool in the hands of governments reluctant to change. It is a far cry from the anticipated model of inspiration the administration promised would spur demands for democracy in the Arab world. But the challenge for the administration's reform plans is far greater than the pictures in Iraq convey. A year after major combat was dec...

Key Documents: Partnership for Progress and a Common Future with the Region of the Broader Middle East and North Africa Sea Island, Georgia June 9, 2004 1. We the leaders of the G8 are mindful that peace, political, economic and social development, prosperity and stability in the countries of the Broader Middle East and North Africa represent a challenge which concerns us and the international community as a whole. Therefore, we declare our support for democratic, social and economic reform emanating from that region. 2. The peoples of the Broader Middle East and North Africa have a rich tradition and culture of accomplishment in government, trade, science, the arts, and more. They have made many lasting contributions to human civilization. We welcome recent statements on the need for reform from leaders in the region, especially the latest statement issued at the Arab League Summit in Tunis, in which Arab leaders expressed their determination “to firmly establish the basis for demo...

Promotion of Human Rights, Democracy Vital to U.S. Interests State's Dobriansky says democracy cornerstone of U.S. foreign policy By Brittany SterrettWashington File Staff Writer Washington -- It is completely within the United States’ interests to champion human rights abroad, according to Human Rights Watch’s Washington Advocacy Director Tom Malinowski. “There is no distinction most of the time between American national interests and human rights,” Malinowski told an audience at Washington’s Hudson Institute June 20 during a policy discussion entitled “America’s Mission: Debating Strategies for the Promotion of Democracy and Human Rights.” He noted that, in his opinion, the biggest problem the United States faces is overall credibility. He recommended that the administration “speak out for all dissidents, not just those who like the U.S.,” and he urged it to support everyone who speaks out peacefully. Jennifer Windsor, executive director of Freedom House, added that the administ...