The new strategy explains a series of reversals of U.S. policy that otherwise would be baffling. In addition to embracing the Middle East peacemaker role that it has shunned for six years, the administration has decided to seek $98 million in funding for Palestinian security forces — the same forces it rightly condemned in the past as hopelessly corrupt and compromised by involvement in terrorism. Those forces haven’t changed, but since they are nominally loyal to “mainstream” Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and serve as a check on the power of the “extremist” Hamas, they are on the right side of Ms. Rice’s new divide.
So is Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, a thuggish autocrat who was on the wrong side of Ms. Rice’s previous Mideast divide between pro-democracy forces and defenders of the illiberal status quo. In past visits to Cairo, Ms. Rice sparred with Mr. Mubarak’s foreign minister over the imprisonment of democratic opposition leaders such as Ayman Nour and the failure to fulfill promises of political reform. On Monday, she opened her Cairo news conference by declaring that “the relationship with Egypt is an important strategic relationship, one that we value greatly.” There was no mention of Mr. Nour or democracy.
They should also mention that this US egging on of a Sunni-Shia conflict is the most irresponsible thing since… well, since the invasion of Iraq. My feeling is that while some Arab governments are at least partly encouraging this worldview to justify their backing of US policy — see Sandmonkey’s reflections on anti-Shia diatribes in the Egyptian press lately — the main force behind this is the Bush administration, which against all common sense seems bent on escalating tensions with Iran. If some kind of regional conflict pitting Shia against Sunnis emerges, than the US will bear a great deal of the responsibility for having started it, and this will not be forgotten by the region’s inhabitants.
Over the last five years, major Arab states like Saudi Arabia and Egypt had made some overtures to Iran and both sides were keen to improve relations. Trade with Iran has also increased over the last few years. Now talks of reopening embassies are over.
This is not dismiss the problem posed by Iran’s nuclear program, but between Iran having nuclear weapons and a region-wide second fitna, I know what I’d choose.
I was about to email you that editorial if you had not already seen it. I am not sure what you are arguing, though: Are you saying the Bush administration is the main driving force behind the worsening Sunni-Shia divide? Or that the administration is the main driving force behind autocratic regimes exploiting that divide? Which one, or both? Because I would not agree with the former.
Whn you talk of the US egging on the Sunni-Shia conflict, are you referring to efforts to isolate Iran, get the Saudis to threaten counterbalancing in Iraq and that sort of thing? Arguably the sectarian tensions in Iraq have done more to produce the sort of anti-Shia sentiment in Egypt that Sandmonkey describes.
Wonder if the lionisation of Nasrallah and even Ahmedinejad as Standing Up to the Americans and Israelis has gone beyond personal charisma to improve the overall image of the Shia in places like Egypt. It looked for a while like it might have done.
Actually if you’re counting numbered “fitnas,” this would technically be the fifth.
Actually I meant the first thing that Andrew disagrees with. I see in the past month, at least, a deliberate policy to frame the coming showdown with Iran as a Sunni vs. Shia affair, when it doesn’t have to be. Condi coming to the region and making a big deal of the GCC 6 + 2 +1 as they are calling these meetings of mostly Sunni countries is intended to rally these countries by providing them a narrative. We know there are debates about Iran in these countries, but even if a faction agrees with the US others believe improving relations with Iran is more important. I mean, does anyone really think the Iranians really physically threaten a lot of Arab nations? I can understand the Gulf countries being jittery, but they have had their own diplomatic process to handle Iran. What’s needed is the formation of an organic regional system based on what the local actors want, not what the US wants in the Persian Gulf. The US is innevitably part of the picture, but in this case I think it is trying to impose a regional order lined up against Iran, effectively pushing these countries to stop any attempt at letting their relationship with the Tehran regime evolve more naturally.
“If I wasn’t Muslim” on Google Video:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2670282595787312582&hl=en
Not bad! I think it would have been funnier if he had danced the Dubke during the chorus.
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I have come to your blog after reading about SADDAM, an excellent piece. Its seldom to see sensible mature & intelligent discussion in Arab press in western media (due to their vest interests/ control etc)You got it right promoting Arab unity with peace message. The way Arab governments are following USA instructions are likened to be pressing self destruct button. The western double standards are so obvious as explained in your articles and anyone who fail to notice is either lacks basic understanding or is paid agent.