Article
Thomas Carothers, McKenzie Carrier
REQUIRED IMAGE
Paper
Is Gradualism Possible? Choosing a Strategy for Promoting Democracy in the Middle East
Published on Jun 12, 2003
Source: Carnegie
Summary
As part of the changed U.S. geostrategic outlook arising from the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks against the United States, the Bush administration is giving greatly heightened attention to the issue of promoting democracy in the Middle East. Although a policy of coercive regime change has been applied in Iraq, the administration has pursued a more gradualist model of political change in most of the region.
There is still little consensus among U.S. policy makers regarding the best approach for implementing democracy. This working paper assesses three competing strategies that have emerged within the growing domain of gradualist pro-democratic policies and programs.
Click on link above for full text of this Carnegie Paper.
This is the third in a series of working papers that will frame key issues relating to democracy promotion policies and programs in the Middle East. Also in the series:
Liberalization Versus Democracy: Understanding Arab Political Reform, by Daniel Brumberg
Promoting Democracy in the Middle East: The Problem of U.S. Credibility, by Marina Ottaway
About the Author
Thomas Carothers, senior associate at the Carengie Endowment, is the founder and director of the Endowment's Democracy and Rule of Law Project. He is the author of several books on democracy promotion, including Aiding Democracy Abroad: The Learning Curve, and a coauthor of Democratic Mirage in the Middle East (Carnegie Endowment Policy Brief No. 20).
Available only online.
About the Author
Thomas Carothers
Harvey V. Fineberg Chair for Democracy Studies; Director, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program
Thomas Carothers, director of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program, is a leading expert on comparative democratization and international support for democracy.
- How Anger Over Corruption Keeps Driving Global Politics
- When Do Mass Protests Topple Autocrats?Commentary
Thomas Carothers, McKenzie Carrier
Recent Work
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
- Protests Like No Kings Can Only Go So Far to Stem AuthoritarianismCommentary
Lessons from other backsliding democracies show that mass mobilization needs to feed into an electoral strategy.
Saskia Brechenmacher, Shreya Joshi
- Win or Lose, Orbán has Broken Hungary’s DemocracyCommentary
Hungarians head to the polls on April 12 for an election of national and European consequence. Three different outcomes are on the cards, each with their own implications for the EU.
Zsuzsanna Szelényi
- The Changing Military Balance in the Black Sea: A Ukrainian PerspectiveArticle
Ukraine’s asymmetric approach has rendered Russia’s Black Sea Fleet functionally useless. But a long-term commitment will be needed to maintain this balance of power.
Alina Frolova, Stepan Yakymiak
- The Iran War Is Uncovering the Weakness in U.S.-Gulf TiesCommentary
Neither the Abraham Accords nor the presence of large U.S. bases are enough to protect Arab Gulf states.
Marwan Muasher
- The Afghanistan–Pakistan War Poses Awkward Questions for RussiaCommentary
Not only does the fighting jeopardize regional security, it undermines Russian attempts to promote alternatives to the Western-dominated world order.
Ruslan Suleymanov
