Kepel and Kramer Discuss the Future of the Arab Spring

During a Policy Forum at the Washington Institute of Near East Policy, chair of Middle East and Mediterranean Studies at Sciences Po Giles Kepel and Dr. Martin Kramer, the Washington Institute’s Wexler Fromer fellow discussed the future of the Arab uprisings.  Kepel pointed tothe Arab people’s economic grievances, frustrations over rampant corruption and the expiration of the Islamist threat as reasons for the revolution.  He also noted the differences between the Tunisian transition and the Egyptian transition and the role of Islamists in both countries.  Kramer noted the misnomer of the “Arab Spring” and stated that while some see the uprisings as a sign of new pan-Arabism, the popular movements have differed greatly between countries and have “rekindled not a spirit of Arabism, but one of sectarianism, regionalism, and separatism.” He also noted that while the protests were led by youth activists, “it would be a mistake to believe that we live in a post-Islamist world.”