President Obama and US Policy in the Middle East

President Obama gave a momentous speech today in the State Department in Washington, DC. In it, he outlined all future US policy in the Middle East and North Africa, regions which, if you’ve been paying attention to the news or even have just read previous posts on this site, is undergoing immense change and upheaval. The “Arab Spring,” as it’s grown to be called, is in full force, with people all across the region demanding that their fundamental human rights be met and that they vote for their government. The Obama Administration has been wishy washy when it came to its policy in the region, supporting change in some states and being silent in others. The President hoped to end all that with his speech today. And I must say, I applaud him. It seems that he and his administration really get it. For those of you brave enough to dive into watching the speech itself, you can watch all glorious 50 minutes here. For those of you that would rather not, I’ll break all the points he covered down for you. I’ve divided the speech up into three parts, and considering this was a 50 minute speech, prepare for this post to be a rather long one.

The Political and Human Rights Side

The President started off his speech with a pat on the back of sorts, saying that US interests in the region had been given a boost by the elimination of al Qaeda’s top man, Osama bin Laden, just a few days earlier. He went on, however, to say that al Qaeda has been made virtually irrelevant by the recent protests, as I have previously stated. He eventually arrived at the story of Mohammed Bouazizi, which you can read up on here. Long story short, Bouazizi lit himself on fire because of the injustice of the regime in Tunisia and started the revolutions in the Middle East. Obama said that Bouazizi shows that the act of a lone citizen could change the world, and drew parallels to Rosa Parks. He also went on to say how the youth of the Middle East has started these protests, and that the internet was crucial in connecting and organising the revolutions. Nonviolence of protest has made al Qaeda’s change through violence moot. Obama then went on to lay out the United States’ actual policies in the region. First and foremost, all violence against peaceful protests was condemned. A call for more human rights for the people of the Middle East was made, and dialogue was encouraged by both sides, lest nothing be accomplished.

Finished with the general stuff, Obama continued on, and started actually naming countries where change has not been forthcoming by the leaders of the country. First on the list was Libya, where he justified NATO intervention by saying that the Libyan people themselves called out for help, and that NATO helped stop a massacre. Syria was up next, where Obama called out President Assad for killing peaceful protests. Assad could either “lead the reforms or get out of the way.” Iran was next, where Obama criticized the regime for encouraging protests elsewhere, but brutally suppressing any in their own country. In regards to Yemen, Obama called for President Salah to step down and stop attacking his own citizens. Bahrain wasn’t able to escape criticism, too, with Obama saying that both sides should come to the table to begin discussing terms.

The President then began to talk about the importance of free speech in the region, and how informed citizens breed good democracies. The freedom of journalism and speech must be protected at all costs. Obama also talked about the recent sectarian violence in Egypt, saying that Coptic Christians must be allowed to practice their own religion in peace. Likewise, Obama called for equal rights for women throughout the region. With that, he then moved on to the economic situation in the Middle East.

The Economic Side

Reaching the second part of his speech, Obama talked about how the tipping point for many people wasn’t the lack of political freedoms but the lack of their ability to simply put food on the table. He mentioned the fact that many people in Egypt and elsewhere have fantastic educations, but can’t seem to find a job. Wael Ghonim got a mention by Obama, who said that it was no surprise a Google Executive was a main organiser of the protests, for “the greatest untapped resource of the Middle East is the talent of its people."

Getting down to actions, Obama talked about how the US would begin to facilitate trade, not just aid, to Tunisia, Egypt, and any other country that participates in legitimate political reform. At the next G8 summit, Obama has asked that the IMF (International Monetary Fund) and the World Bank present a plan to stabilize the economy of the Middle East. To get Egypt back on its feet, Obama has pledged to waive $1 billion in debt that Egypt owed the United States, and has said that up to $1 billion could be borrowed from the US to allow for enterprise to rebuild in the country. He hoped to revitalize trade in the region and abroad, saying that right now, the entire region’s exports totaled those of Switzerland if you took out oil. Obama also touched upon the issue of corruption, and how it prevented legitimate business ideas from beginning because the entrepreneurs didn’t have the money to buy the bribes to get the funds to begin. With that, Obama moved on to perhaps the most interesting portion of his speech.

Israel and Palestine

When talking about policy in the Middle East, one can never not mention the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Obama began by saying that this is the perfect time to throw off the shackles of the past and begin afresh as the rest of the region has been doing. He first stated that the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory must end, or no progress will be accomplished. Likewise, he called upon the Palestinians to stop attacking Israel. As almost every other person in the world realises, Obama too said that the two state system was the only way to move forward. There must be two autonomous, legitimate states that recognize the sovereignty of each other: an Arab Palestine and a Jewish Israel, with the borders fixed at pre-1967 levels. He called upon both sides to realise that they aren’t so different, and to come together to reach peace.

Conclusion

Obama promptly wrapped up his speech, concluding with the fact that the region can choose between hate and hope; the shackles of the past or the appeal of the future. He drew parallels between the revolutions shaking the region of the Middle East today with the United States’ own revolution. Fittingly, he ended with a quote from the Declaration of Independence, that