• Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
Carnegie Global logoCarnegie lettermark logo
DemocracyIran
  • Donate
{
  "authors": [
    "Marina Ottaway",
    "Amr Hamzawy"
  ],
  "type": "other",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
  ],
  "collections": [],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "democracy",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
  "programAffiliation": "DCG",
  "programs": [
    "Democracy, Conflict, and Governance",
    "Middle East"
  ],
  "projects": [],
  "regions": [
    "Middle East"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Political Reform",
    "Democracy",
    "Economy",
    "Foreign Policy"
  ]
}
REQUIRED IMAGE

REQUIRED IMAGE

Other

Political Reform in the Middle East: Can the United States and Europe Work Together?

Although the United States and Europe share in interest in promoting political reform in the Middle East, they have not yet worked out whether they can work productively together on this task. Recent efforts to forge joint initiatives have demonstrated a tendency to devolve into lowest common denominator approaches that generate only lukewarm commitment.

Link Copied
By Marina Ottaway and Amr Hamzawy
Published on Dec 10, 2004
Program mobile hero image

Program

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.

Learn More
Program mobile hero image

Program

Middle East

The Middle East Program in Washington combines in-depth regional knowledge with incisive comparative analysis to provide deeply informed recommendations. With expertise in the Gulf, North Africa, Iran, and Israel/Palestine, we examine crosscutting themes of political, economic, and social change in both English and Arabic.

Learn More

Although the United States and Europe share in interest in promoting political reform in the Middle East, they have not yet worked out whether they can work productively together on this task. Recent efforts to forge joint initiatives have demonstrated a tendency to devolve into lowest common denominator approaches that generate only lukewarm commitment. A better way forward is for the United States and Europe to pursue separate but complementary policies that emphasize the respective strengths of each side—in the case of the United States, its power, in the case of Europe, its credibility in the Arab world.
Click link at right for full text.

Click on the link above for the full text of this Policy Outlook.

About the Authors
Marina Ottaway is a senior associate in the Democracy and Rule of Law Project at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. She works on problems of democratization and post-conflict transitions.
Amr Hamzawy is a senior associate in the Democracy and Rule of Law Project at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He works on issues of political reform in the Middle East.

About the Authors

Marina Ottaway

Former Senior Associate, Middle East Program

Before joining the Endowment, Ottaway carried out research in Africa and in the Middle East for many years and taught at the University of Addis Ababa, the University of Zambia, the American University in Cairo, and the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa.

Amr Hamzawy

Director, Middle East Program

Amr Hamzawy is a senior fellow and the director of the Carnegie Middle East Program. His research and writings focus on Egypt’s and other middle powers’ involvement in regional security in the Middle East, particularly through collective diplomacy and multilateral conflict resolution

Authors

Marina Ottaway
Former Senior Associate, Middle East Program
Marina Ottaway
Amr Hamzawy
Director, Middle East Program
Amr Hamzawy
Political ReformDemocracyEconomyForeign PolicyMiddle East

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.

More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

  • Commentary
    The Spring and Autumn of Chinese Politics

    China’s political future will be shaped between now and next October. As the Communist Party enters its intense “campaign season” to prepare for a major political transition in 2027, reading Beijing's actions and responses may become more difficult as domestic politics weigh on its behavior more than usual.

      • Damien Ma

      Damien Ma

  • Commentary
    Strategic Europe
    Europe Needs its own Sanctions-Enforcement Muscle

    The EU can impose sanctions but struggles to enforce them without the United States. With Washington increasingly disinterested in backing European interests, the bloc must now fend for itself.

      Nicu Popescu, Tiago Antunes

  • African finance ministers sit in front of a blue IMF-WB screen.
    Article
    Africa in Demand: How the Continent Is Advancing Its Interests in a Competitive World

    Global and rising powers will need to engage with Africa’s priorities and agency in order to secure the continent’s increasingly attractive partnerships.

      • Fonteh Akum

      Fonteh Akum

  • Men in suits watching people dancing
    Commentary
    Emissary
    Central Asia Wants U.S. Investments. It Is Less Sure About U.S. Conditions.

    Rubio’s recent visit brought welcome attention, but more capital requires governance changes that may be a hard sell for regional governments.

      Jennifer B. Murtazashvili

  • Military rescue helicopter during sunset stock photo
    Paper
    The End of Primacy Without Pain: Why the Domestic Foundation of American Power Is Crumbling

    America’s foreign-policy objectives have grown more demanding while Americans have demanded greater focus on their own affairs.

      Stephen Wertheim

Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Carnegie global logo, stacked
1779 Massachusetts Avenue NWWashington, DC, 20036-2103Phone: 202 483 7600
  • Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
  • Donate
  • Programs
  • Events
  • Blogs
  • Podcasts
  • Contact
  • Annual Reports
  • Careers
  • Privacy
  • For Media
  • Government Resources
Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
© 2026 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All rights reserved.