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David Warren: An Arab split
DavidWarrenOnLine ^ | March 31, 2004 | David Warren

Posted on 3/31/2004, 2:07:18 PM by Tolik

The cancellation of the annual Arab League summit, which was to have begun on Monday, has sent fresh shockwaves through the Arab world. The Tunisian hosts, who, as the holders of the rotating presidency, had the right to set the meeting's agenda, were determined to put democracy and political reform at the top of it. Most of the member states rebelled, demanding the usual parade of "Arab unity", ritual condemnations of Israel, and an opportunity to organize authoritarian resistance to the reform pressure coming from Washington. The Tunisians responded unilaterally, saying, in effect, "We won 't do that any more."

President Mubarak of Egypt called a desperate meeting at Sharm el Sheik, enlisting the Saudi princes and the Sheikh of Bahrain to organize a replacement summit in Cairo for April 16th. But he is outmanoeuvred, for a change. The other North African states, especially Libya, share Tunisia's commitment to realign with the United States, Britain, and the new Iraq. They expect to benefit as Iraq has benefited, and seem willing to allow the Arab League to split rather than trudge to Cairo. Their willingness to discuss, openly, things that the Arab governments have always swept under the rug -- real questions of constitutional legitimacy and human rights -- has already left the Arab League in chaos.

This is good news. The Arab League, committed from the beginning to confusing questions of state with questions of race and religion, is one of the world's unnecessary evils. It provides rhetorical and some financial cover for many of the world's most despicable regimes. If, through their invasion of Iraq, the Bush and Blair governments have contributed to its destruction, then they deserve additional praise.

Paradoxically, just as Spain and other European allies may be excusing themselves from the U.S.-led "war on terror", more Arab states are joining up. And they are showing a boldness that was inspired by that Iraq invasion -- by their discovery that the U.S. is now willing to put its money and its troops where its mouth is.

The underlying issue is not international co-operation, per se. It is how this can be accomplished. "Old Europe", and the more backward-looking Arab regimes, insist that the best way to do this is to continue subverting the international state system, by taking major decisions and responsibilities out of the hands of sovereign states and transferring them to the United Nations and other collective agencies, including the Arab League. With a much sounder grasp of history and reality, the Americans are trying to restore that state system, by creating functioning, benign states to replace the failed and evil ones.

In an excellent piece in Monday's Wall Street Journal, George Schultz, the clear-headed man who was President Reagan's secretary of state, wrote directly to this point. He was thus writing against the sentimental idealism that persists in eulogizing "collective policy" -- and thus overlooking the astonishing manifestations of corruption and incompetence that it invariably achieves (e.g. billions in "oil for food" kickbacks in Iraq; millions laundered into Palestinian terror organizations; Rwanda).

For centuries, such order as has been achieved on earth has been through the existence of independent states, acting on legal responsibilities to one another. International organizations exist for the individual states, and not vice versa.

Mr. Schultz wrote about the phenomenon of failed and rogue states from his experience in the Reagan administration. It was a huge and growing problem, then. Yet the idea that terrorists could exploit the lawless environment of collapsed states such as Somalia and Afghanistan, or rogue regimes such as Iraq, Iran, and North Korea, was only beginning to be discerned. The obvious Western policy was to shore up the state system, not subvert it further. Alas, this was not the Clinton administration's policy, and crucial time was lost through eight years when the U.S. itself ignored the growing problem, while responding to the incidental ones by firing the odd cruise missile up the backside of a camel, then walking away.

The issue is more fundamental than democracy, and glib rhetoric about democracy (from Bush and Blair, among others) has helped to obscure it. In the present circumstances of the world, where a suitcase nuclear bomb or vial of anthrax can open the gates of hell, we cannot afford to ignore breeding grounds for terrorists. Failed or rogue states -- states unable or unwilling to deal with international threats as they form within their own territories -- must be replaced with states that are able and willing. Hence regime change in e.g. Afghanistan and Iraq.



TOPICS: Editorial; Foreign Affairs; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: arabs; arabsummit; arabworld; davidwarren; waronterror; wot

1 posted on 3/31/2004, 2:07:19 PM by Tolik
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To: Lando Lincoln; seamole; quidnunc; headsonpikes; Jeff Chandler; Travis McGee; MEG33; nopardons; ...
David Warren - Clear-thinking Canadian -  BUMP  [please freepmail me if you want or don't want to be pinged to David Warren articles]

If you want to bookmark his articles discussed at FR: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/k-davidwarren/browse

His own website: http://www.davidwarrenonline.com

His page at the Ottawa Citizen:  http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawacitizen/columnists/davidwarren.html

2 posted on 3/31/2004, 2:07:54 PM by Tolik
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To: Tolik
Bush's foreign policy is causing major shockwaves through the Arab world, and lefties say this is a bad thing...
3 posted on 3/31/2004, 3:12:09 PM by Guillermo (Your own personal Konservative Klick-Guerilla)
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To: Tolik
President Mubarak of Egypt called a desperate meeting at Sharm el Sheik, enlisting the Saudi princes

Now there's a marrage made in heaven.
/Sarcasm
4 posted on 3/31/2004, 3:19:05 PM by Valin (Hating people is like burning down your house to kill a rat)
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To: Tolik
Bump
5 posted on 3/31/2004, 5:00:27 PM by Valin (Hating people is like burning down your house to kill a rat)
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To: Tolik; Guillermo; Valin; Grampa Dave
The obvious Western policy was to shore up the state system, not subvert it further. Alas, this was not the Clinton administration's policy

Strobe Talbott predicted the disappearance of the nation-state, as he and Albright worked to undermine U.S. sovereignty.

Jean-Fraud Keri, too, cleaves to the rogues, promising to repair the damage done by the U.S. since 911.

The choice is clear: Bush, who ferrets out tyrants, and Kerry, who felates them.


6 posted on 4/1/2004, 12:38:13 AM by PhilDragoo (Hitlery: das Butch von Buchenvald)
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To: Tolik
Late david Warren BUMP!
7 posted on 4/8/2004, 7:08:39 PM by happygrl
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To: Tolik
The other North African states, especially Libya, share Tunisia's commitment to realign with the United States, Britain, and the new Iraq.

Did this jump out at anybody else?? Has Ghadaffi some to his senses?

8 posted on 4/8/2004, 7:11:48 PM by Former Proud Canadian
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