Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
As protests continue to grow in the Middle East, Yemen, Jordan, Syria, and Bahrain are now threatened by the wave of discontent.
With international media effectively prevented from covering the protests in Iran, the regime is using repressive techniques to try to bring an end to opposition demonstrations in the county.
Although the circumstances in Egypt and Iran are significantly different, protestors in Iran are being inspired by Egypt’s example and some of the Iranian opposition have begun to call for an end to the regime in Tehran.
With no clear leadership emerging from among the Egyptian demonstrators and opposition, the Egyptian military remains the only institution capable of shepherding the country’s political transition.
While the Egyptian opposition wants an inclusive and fundamental reform and a transition to a more pluralist and democratic system, it remains to be seen whether their demands will be met by the military.
As protests and youth movements continue across the Middle East, U.S. policy will be reacting to, not shaping, the changes occurring throughout the region.
There is little doubt that Hosni Mubarak's legacy in Egypt will primarily be seen as economic stagnation and lost regional influence.
The protest movement in Jordan is fundamentally about opening the political system in Jordan, not economic grievances.
A fundamental difference remains between what Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and even Vice President Suleiman have been offering and what the demonstrators are looking for.
The United States has attempted to maintain a careful balance between pressuring the Mubarak regime to accede to the demonstrators' demands and working to provide stability in Egypt.