Revolution in Egypt

A few notes on Egypt:

1) I think the reaction in the US to the Egyptian crisis has been interesting. Many on the left are upset that President Obama has not done more to promote the removal of Mubarak, while most on the right have chided him for abandoning Mubarak, an important US ally in the Middle East. The talk on the right seems to be motivated by concern over the Muslim Brotherhood taking control of Egypt and the possible threat that might pose to Israel (most of what I have read, to the contrary, states that the Muslim Brotherhood, while Islamist, is actually quite moderate, and the party would be unlikely to capture more than 30 percent of Egyptian votes).

I do understand the concern for Israel. Revolutionary state theory suggests that unclear perceptions and motives in this environment make conflict more likely. Still, I believe in liberalism, and I believe that a democratic Egypt can be an even greater ally to Israel than an autocratic Egypt.  And the popular, democratic rights and desires of the Egyptian population should not be sacrificed for Israeli security concerns. If and when a new Egyptian government is formed, the US and Israel can make clear that they want friendly relations and will not tolerate threats to the Israeli state.

The Palestine papers

The Economist’s Newsbook says the “Palestine papers” show Israel’s disinterest in the peace process:

They contradict the official Israeli narrative that the Palestinians rejected generous Israeli offers, and portray Palestinians as initiating ideas, only to be stymied by Israeli stonewalling. They give credence to Palestinian claims that Mr Netanyahu made no counter-proposals. Had a more responsive Israeli prime minister been in charge, or had the Obama administration picked up from where his predecessors left off, rather than frittering away two years on an elusive settlement freeze, a two-state agreement might yet have looked imminent.

No surprise there. But I disagree about Obama. Asking Israel to abide by international law and stop building illegal settlements on Palestinian land is not “frittering away two years.” It is merely asking the state that the United States hails as the Middle East’s ‘one true democracy’ to act worthy of that label, and it is necessary for the peace process to move forward. Fragile coalition politics aside, Benjamin Netanyahu’s refusal to enact a freeze demonstrates that he is not, and perhaps never was, interested in achieving peace on anyone’s terms but his own.