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Libya: Security Is Not Enough

President Bush has suggested that other nations follow the example of Libya, which ended links with terrorist groups and surrendered weapons of mass destruction and delivery systems. But there is a second lesson: The United States will forgo its declared interest in democratization if a country takes positive security-related steps and has enough petroleum to offer.

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By Michele Dunne
Published on Oct 5, 2004
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Democracy, Conflict, and Governance

The Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program is a leading source of independent policy research, writing, and outreach on global democracy, conflict, and governance. It analyzes and seeks to improve international efforts to reduce democratic backsliding, mitigate conflict and violence, overcome political polarization, promote gender equality, and advance pro-democratic uses of new technologies.

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President George W. Bush has suggested that other nations—Iran, North Korea, Syria—follow the example of Libya, which increased its own security by ending links with terrorist groups and surrendering weapons of mass destruction and delivery systems. Some commentators are taking a second lesson from the Libya case: The United States will forgo its declared interest in democratization and reform if a country takes positive security-related steps and has enough petroleum to offer. The United States needs to correct this impression.

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About The Author
Michele Dunne, a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment, is a visiting lecturer at Georgetown University. She served in the Department of State on assignments including the National Security Council Staff, the Secretary of State’s Planning Staff, the U.S. Embassy in Cairo and the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem.

 

 

 

About the Author

Michele Dunne

Former Nonresident Scholar, Middle East Program

Michele Dunne was a nonresident scholar in Carnegie’s Middle East Program, where her research focuses on political and economic change in Arab countries, particularly Egypt, as well as U.S. policy in the Middle East.

    Recent Work

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Michele Dunne
Former Nonresident Scholar, Middle East Program
Michele Dunne
Political ReformDemocracySecurityMilitaryForeign PolicyUnited StatesLibya

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

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