The US is currently facing a tremendous loss of influence in the region. Changing US policy toward authoritarian regimes has been like turning an oil tanker.
German involvement in Afghanistan did not begin with the attacks of September 11. German humanitarian and development aid existed before the German military intervention – and it will (and must) still be there after the military mission is over.
The self-immolation of young and jobless Tunisian Mohamed Bouazizi in the provincial town of Sidi Bouzid, being deprived of his vegetable stand and humiliated by the authorities, triggered popular movements and historic events in the Arab World completely unexpected in their magnitude.
This report offers a detailed look at the U.S. funding and assistance for democracy and governance in the Middle East, the Congressional appropriations process, and implications for U.S. policy in the Middle East during this turbulent time.
It is young people at the heart of the Arab revolt who are rebelling not for jihad but for freedom and democracy. Nevertheless, bin Laden's death opens up huge opportunities worldwide. President Barack Obama needs to follow up on the promise he made in Cairo, two years ago, when he pledged to build bridges to the Muslim world.
Should Arab countries with less advanced technological capacities invest in nuclear power that proved uncontrollable in Fukushima, Japan? Activists and policy-makers from the Arab World and Europe critically discuss these and other questions in this report.
The people of Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, and also in other countries such as Yemen, Bahrain and Algeria are revolting against encrusted structures. Which direction the movement will take is still open, but one thing has become clear during the last few weeks: Neither the EU nor the EU Member States can claim that the current transition process in Tunisia or Egypt is a direct result of the European democratization policy.
