POMED Notes: New Directions for the U.S. and Muslim World

On Friday, the Brookings Institution hosted Saad Eddin Ibrahim, Chairman of the Ibn Khaldun Center for Development Studies in Cairo; Stephen Grand, Fellow and Director of the Project on U.S. Relations with the Islamic World at Brookings; and Ahmed Younis, Analyst at the Gallup Center for Muslim Studies, to discuss the 2008 Doha Compact report and the future of U.S. relations with the Muslim world. The event was moderated by Jackson Diehl, Deputy Editorial Page Editor at the Washington Post.

Stephen Grand outlined the Doha Compact, which calls for the adoption of a new style of American foreign policy that addresses in partnership the conflicts that divide us. Saad Eddin Ibrahim said the U.S. should deemphasize the importance of elections in
democracy promotion and focus on advancing the rule of law, free media, education, and economic development. Ahmed Younis said the lack of domestic political freedom and economic opportunity leads to the negative perception of the U.S. He said it is not hegemonic to articulate and advance those U.S. values that Muslim populations most respect and admire.

For POMED’s notes on the event, click here.