Can the United States Promote Democracy in the Middle East?

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In The Media

Can the United States Promote Democracy in the Middle East?

By Ms. Amy Hawthorne

Published on Jan 1, 2003

Source: Carnegie

Current History, January, 2003.

Click here to read view a pdf of the full text.

The Arab world's democracy deficit has finally captured Washington's attention. Despite this high-level interest, the Bush administration has yet to formulate a realistic democracy-promotion strategy for the Middle East. Ambitious plans to replace current regimes with democratic successors have been proposed for some leaders the United States opposes; elsewhere, a more low-key approach seems to be emerging. What is needed is a sustained policy of high-level engagement with Arab governments, along with support for openings that would bolster reformist groups, and a willingness to accept that genuine political change will be bumpy. Even this modest policy would represent a dramatic and difficult shift for the United States, especially as regional tensions increase.

About the Author

Ms. Amy Hawthorne

Former Associate

Recent Work

Commentary
Egypt: Making the Vote Freer and Fairer?
- Ms. Amy Hawthorne
Commentary
Egypt's Judges Win Public Support but not Government Concessions
- Ms. Amy Hawthorne, Hesham Nasr

Political Reform Democracy Foreign Policy United States Middle East

Carnegie India 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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