Yemen: U.S. Aiding “Downward Spiral” on Human Rights?
August 25th, 2010 by Jennifer
Amnesty International issued a statement today arguing that “the Yemeni authorities must stop sacrificing human rights in the name of security.” Malcolm Smart, director of Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Program, commented that “an extremely worrying trend has developed where the Yemeni authorities, under pressure from the USA and others to fight al-Qa’ida, and Saudi Arabia to deal with the Huthis, have been citing national security as a pretext to deal with opposition and stifle all criticism.” The statement notes a pattern in Yemen of extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, torture, forced disappearances, and unfair trials of those accused of involvement in Al-Qaeda, Zaidi Shi’a rebels in the north, and Southern Movement activists. The Amnesty document also observes an uptick both in the use of the death penalty as punishment, as well as the use of the Specialized Criminal Court (SCC) to try critical journalists and political activists. The statement concludes, “It is particularly worrying that states such as Saudi Arabia and the USA are directly or indirectly aiding the Yemeni government in a downward spiral away from previously improving human rights record.”
Posted in Human Rights, Judiciary, Middle Eastern Media, Terrorism, US foreign policy, Uncategorized, Yemen | Comment »
POMED Notes: “Perspectives on Reconciliation Options in Afghanistan”
July 28th, 2010 by Jennifer
The U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations held a hearing to discuss reconciliation and reintegration in Afghanistan. Touching on issues of governance and civil institution building, the hearing was twelve in a series the Committee has held on Afghanistan in the past 18 months. The Committee—chaired by Sen. John F. Kerry (D-MA), with ranking Committee member Sen. Richard G. Lugar (R-IN) in attendance—requested the testimony of three individuals: the Honorable Ryan C. Crocker, former U.S. Ambassador to Iraq and Pakistan; Zainab Salbi, founder and CEO of Women for Women International; and Dr. David Kilcullen of the Center for a New American Security.
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Posted in Afghanistan, Elections, Foreign Aid, Taliban, Terrorism, US foreign policy | Comment »
POMED Notes: “Iran: The Year of Reckoning”
June 4th, 2010 by Josh
Earlier today, the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars hosted an event to explore the last year of Iranian politics and U.S. diplomacy toward the Iranian regime. There were two panels of experts, each highlighting a different component of either geopolitics or internal Iranian social forces. The first, moderated by professor Shaul Bakhash of George Mason University, included: Michael Postl, former Ambassador of the Austrian Republic to Iran; and Nicholas Burns, former Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs and current professor at Harvard. The second panel, moderated by professor Kaveh Ehsani from DePaul University, included: Farideh Farhi, independent scholar and affiliate graduate faculty at the University of Hawaii at Manoa; and Suzanne Malone, senior fellow at the Saban Center for Middle East Policy.
Click here for POMED’s notes in PDF, or continue reading below the fold.
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Posted in DC Event Notes, Diplomacy, Elections, Freedom, Iran, Multilateralism, Reform, Terrorism, US foreign policy, United Nations, sanctions | 1 Comment »
Obama’s Cairo Speech: Assessing the Relationship Between Rhetoric and Action
June 2nd, 2010 by Josh
Ahead of the one-year anniversary of President Obama’s Cairo address, Scott Carpenter and Dina Guirguis of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy unpack the last twelve months of Middle East engagement with respect to the seven core issues identified in the speech as paramount to U.S.-Muslim relations: the need to confront violent extremism; the Arab-Israeli conflict; Iran’s drive to obtain nuclear weapons; democracy; religious freedom; women’s rights; and economic development.
Overall, Carpenter and Guirguis conclude that “tangible deliverables from the Cairo address were in short supply.” Perhaps recognizing this reality, the administration has spent the last few months “reframing the speech’s intent and legacy” away from “outreach to Muslims” and toward a notion of “global engagement” that articulated a “generational mission statement” rather than a series of initiatives. “In this context,” the authors write, “the issuance of a new National Security Strategy (NSS) just days before the Cairo anniversary is apparently no coincidence.” Yet even though the NSS strengthens what Carpenter and Guirguis view as the speech’s relative deficiencies, “Washington’s strategy remains open to the same critique as the original Cairo address.”
Posted in Democracy Promotion, Diplomacy, Freedom, Human Rights, Iran, Israel, Mideast Peace Plan, Reform, Terrorism, US foreign policy, Women | Comment »
Iraq: Ayad Allawi’s Coalition Wins Parliamentary Elections
March 26th, 2010 by Chanan
Preliminary results from the nationwide March 7th parliamentary elections show former secular prime minister Ayad Allawi ahead of current Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki by about two seats, granting the former’s Iraqiya alliance the first chance at forming a government. Allawi’s predominantly Sunni bloc received 91 seats in the 325-member parliament compared to Maliki’s 89 seats.
After the results were released, the Washington Post quotes Maliki as saying that “some of these results are unacceptable and unreasonable.” Ad Melkert, the United Nation’s representative in Iraq, disagreed saying ”it is the UN’s considered opinion that these elections have been credible and we congratulate the people of Iraq for this success.” Regardless, Julien Barnes-Dacey, an analyst at the Control Risks Group, explains in a Bloomberg article that “it doesn’t really matter who came first and who came second because it is basically a tie. Everything is up for grabs now.”
Before the results were announced and in response to a statement released by Maliki last week demanding a recount to prevent “a return to violence,” Spencer Ackerman commented that Maliki has the chance to do more for his country’s budding democracy by losing gracefully than by narrowly winning the election. “Nouri al-Maliki will secure his place in history if he becomes the first non-interim Iraqi leader to willingly relinquish power after the results of an election.”
Earlier in the day, 40 people were killed and more than 60 wounded in two bomb blasts in the Diyala province.
Posted in Elections, Iraq, Political Parties, Secularism, Terrorism, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Mauritania: Council Rejects Anti-terrorism Law
March 8th, 2010 by Josh
Following an appeal by 32 opposition members of parliament, a constitutional court declared that ten articles of Mauritania’s new terrorism law — instituted to combat Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb — are illegal under Mauritanian law. The unconstitutional provisions allow for, among other things, “preventive detention of terrorist suspects for 15 days and recording of telephone conversations and their e-mails and those of persons connected with them.” Although Prime Minister Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf defended the government’s good intentions when formulating the terrorism act, he deferred to the court and said that “we respect and abide by the decision.”
Posted in Mauritania, Terrorism, al-Qaeda | Comment »
Democracy Promotion: Anti-terrorism Tool?
March 4th, 2010 by Josh
“Decoupling support for democracy from the broader effort to combat terrorism and religious extremism in the Middle East would be a costly strategic misstep,” say Shadi Hamid and Steven Brooke in a feature for the latest edition of the Hoover Institution’s Policy Review. Surveying a number of reports and academic works, they conclude that political repression breeds violent extremism and that those who commit acts of terrorism are more likely to come from repressive authoritarian states.
Further, Hamid and Brooke argue that the failed Bush administration agenda to promote Middle East democracy was not a reflection of shoddy theorizing, but rather the result of insufficient and poorly resourced policies that, aside from a short period following the 2003 Iraq invasion, did little more than issue rhetorical support for democratic reforms. They propose reformulating the U.S. democratization strategy to include more stringent aid conditionality, greater funding for the Middle East Partnership Initiative and the Millennium Challenge Account, and new initiatives to unite Islamist and secular groups under pro-democracy platforms.
Posted in Democracy Promotion, Reform, Terrorism, US foreign policy | Comment »
Iraq: Voting Begins Amidst Deadly Attacks
March 4th, 2010 by Josh
As thousands of soldiers, police officers, and security officials went to polls today for early voting, three separate attacks killed at least twelve people at voting stations in Baghdad. This comes after a larger attack on Wednesday that killed nearly three dozen. Still, despite the fear in some circles that the recent uptick in violence might delay the U.S. withdrawal, Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell assured reporters that the president’s timeline remains unchanged, saying that “it would take an extraordinarily dire turn of events for [a delay] to be something we were to consider.”
However, the first day of voting was marred by more than just violence; thousands of citizens complained that their names were missing from the registration rolls, prompting the government to announce that anyone unable to find his or her name would be granted a provisional ballot.
Over at the National, Nir Rosen addresses “foreign analysts and reporters” who fear a civil war 2.0 by reiterating his earlier pronouncement that Iraq’s emerging stability will, in his opinion, preclude a return to sectarian violence. But Gregg Carlstrom counters, saying that there is a legitimate concern that “the de-Ba’athification crisis is an indicator of unresolved tensions — and that those tensions, coupled with Iraq’s crushing poverty and severe refugee crisis and lackluster government performance (all of which Rosen chronicles quite well), will lead to unpredictable long-term consequences.”
Elsewhere, the Arab Reform Bulletin has posted two new articles, both of which focus on Iraq and various post-election concerns. Salem Mashkour, an Iraqi journalist and candidate on the ballot, delineates the proliferation of viable political “blocs” since the 2005 contest, saying that he would not be surprised to see a cross-sectarian coalition emerge from the March 7 poll. The Bulletin’s other piece, written by professor Abbas Kadhim of the Naval Postgraduate School, chronicles the social, economic, and political consequences of Iraq’s pervasive corruption.
Posted in Elections, Iraq, Military, Political Parties, Publications, Sectarianism, Terrorism, US foreign policy | Comment »
Goldstone Report: UN Votes to Extend Time
March 1st, 2010 by Josh
Via the Majlis, the UN General Assembly voted 98-7 to grant both the Israelis and Palestinians five additional months to investigate the findings from the Goldstone Report. Although a Palestinian Authority official applauded the action as a victory for both the Palestinians and international law, Alejandro Wolff, U.S. Deputy Ambassador to the UN, criticized the resolution and reiterated the administration’s position that the report is deeply flawed (Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also briefly addressed this issue in response to a question from Congressman Gary Ackerman at last week’s HCFA hearing). You can read the full GA resolution here.
Posted in Hamas, Human Rights, Israel, Military, Palestine, Terrorism, United Nations | Comment »
Libya: Snapshot of the Regime, Prospects for Reform
February 24th, 2010 by Josh
In an interesting feature for Reason’s March issue, Michael Moynihan draws upon his recent trip to Tripoli in order to elucidate what he views as Libya’s continuing stagnation despite both its tremendous oil wealth and recent efforts to engage in dialogue with the West. Highlighting notable contradictions between the government’s rhetoric of reform and ground-level realities, Moynihan recounts a number of conversations with ex-terrorists who, although touted by the government as fully rehabilitated, were actually taken off death-row or promised reduced prison sentences in exchange for renouncing political violence and aiding anti-terrorism investigations. One such individual, claiming he “saw the light” and had abandoned Islamism to work for Colonel Qaddafi’s government, defended Libya’s freedom of the speech and journalistic diversity — but when asked if one would be allowed to print an anti-Qaddafi slogan, he recoiled questioned why anyone would do that, which Moynihan interprets as an unintentional barometer of Libya’s true level of liberalism.
Despite these encounters, Moynihan retains some hope that Saif Qaddafi, Muammar Qaddafi’s son and presumed heir, will issue in a new generation of leaders that will “loosen their chokehold on power in exchange for a seat at the adult table of international politics.” But the current wave of superficial and cosmetic reforms, he says, “have brought [the Libyan people] no closer to the representative democracy Qaddafi promised 40 years ago.”
Posted in Diplomacy, Human Rights, Islam and Democracy, Islamist movements, Libya, Terrorism, US foreign policy | Comment »
Iraq: New Violence Reaction to Ban on Parliamentary Candidates?
February 2nd, 2010 by Jessica
The New York Times reports on yesterday’s suicide bombing on the outskirts of Baghdad, in which approximately 38 people were killed and many more wounded. Despite official pledges to increase security surrounding the annual pilgrimage, the Times quotes one of the wounded victims, “The security forces are responsible because they were not searching anyone.” In response to the attack, Maj. Gen. Qassim Atta al-Moussawi announced that some 134 soldiers and officers would face charges of dereliction of duty and negligence possibly resulting in their court martial, though several accounts of the incident indicate that the bomb was detonated in an area where women were being searched.
Though no one has claimed responsibility, Iraqpundit suggests that the attack, aimed at Shi’a pilgrims, is an escalation of tensions related to the parliamentary elections scheduled for March. He theorizes that the attacks are in response to the exclusion from the upcoming elections of more than 500 candidates based on religious affiliations. The author questions the wisdom of the U.S. and UN position that the Iraq elections are an internal problem, pointing out that submitting to the power of a few corrupt individuals within the government may shift Iraq’s democracy “into another farce of a political system like other countries that claim to be democratic in the region.”
News of the attacks coincide with reports that prominent candidate Sheikh Ahmad Abu Risha has threatened to boycott the upcoming election in response to the governments ban of 500 candidates from the ballot. Abu Risha is the head of the Sahwa, or Awakening, and one of the strongest U.S. allies in the region. An AP report quotes Abu Risha on Iraqi participation in the election should so many remain banned from the election, “They will not care about the election - they will ignore it, maybe if these decisions stand.” While some of the 500 candidates have been reinstated, some 456 remain banned. Of those, seven belong to Abu Risha’s Awakening Council and 70 others are candidates within the Unity Alliance of Iraq political coalition, which Abu Risha also helps lead.
Posted in Elections, Iraq, Reform, Terrorism | Comment »
Afghanistan: Taliban Intensifies Attacks in Advance of International Conference
January 19th, 2010 by Jessica
Dexter Filkins of the New York Times reports in an article entitled, “Kabul Attack Shows Resilience of Afghan Militants,” on the attack made by Taliban militants early Monday morning in the city of Kabul. According to Filkins’ article a total of five people were killed during the course of the attacks with another 71 being injured. The assault, consisting of a group of militants and two suicide bombers, took place in a busy city center in the middle of Kabul. The primary of target of the attacks was the Central Bank, though the Presidential Palace and the Ministry of Justice, both located in Pashtunistan Square, were in close proximity to the area under assault. In response to the attacks several hundred Afghan soldiers were deployed.
Filkins reports that the assault is the most recent operation in a series of incidents designed to instill a sense of panic among the citizens of Kabul. Filkins also comments that urban centers were targeted due to the concentration of U.S. troops in the rural countryside, and that this concentration as led to a recent upsurge in assaults concentrated in urban locals.
The assaults lasted approximately 5 hours, leaving a popular Afghan shopping area in ruins. Of the seven Taliban carrying out the attacks, 2 were suicide bombers, the remaining 5 were killed during the course of the following conflict. Spokesmen for the Taliban greatly exaggerated the number of militants carrying out the assault, reporting that approximately 20 suicide bombers had been dispersed to the city’s center and that some 40 plus government officials had been killed.
Taliban representatives stated that the attacks were in response to American and Afghan proposals to “reconcile and reintegrate Taliban fighters into mainstream society.” This proposal, an essential tenet of Obama’s plan for peace in Afghanistan, was meant to be revealed later this month at the International Conference on Afghanistan in London. The conference is designed to bring Afghan leaders and the international community together in order to discuss the strategies for democracy and development in Afghanistan. Policymakers will develop milestones for improving the Afghan government with followup conferences to take place Kabul designed to evaluate the effectiveness of the aforementioned milestones.
Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesperson for the Taliban, is quoted in response to the proposed policy as saying, “We are ready to fight, and we have the strength to fight, and nobody from the Taliban side is ready to make any kind of deal.”
Evan Hill in his post entitled, “Taliban Launches Raid in Kabul; Gov’t says 5 dead 38 wounded,” urges that the January 18th assault not hinder U.S. and Afghan plans to reintegrate members of the Taliban back into society. Hill comments, “It might be a slap in the face, but it doesn’t seem to me as if an assault by a few dozen fanatics undermines the entire effort to bring certain Taliban back into society.”
Posted in Afghanistan, Taliban, Terrorism | Comment »
Jordan: Islamists Challenge Government over Role in Afghanistan
January 14th, 2010 by Josh
Via the New York Times, Jordanian Islamists recently issued a statement titled, “It Is Not Our War,” in which they decry Jordanian participation in, and cooperation with, U.S. military operations in the Afghan theater. In addition to calling for the withdrawal of Jordanian forces from Afghanistan, they demanded “an end to the policy of what is called cooperation or security coordination with the Zionist enemy or the American intelligence agencies.” The Times noted that the deadly suicide attack on CIA operatives carried out by Humam Khalil Abu Mulal al-Balawi, a Jordanian doctor, spurred a round of heated internal debate as various segments of society found themselves caught between two national interests: Jordanian pride and American partnership. In fact, political analyst Hasan Abu Hanieh described a largely confused population who “[did] not even know that there are Jordanian forces in Afghanistan and Pakistan.” Zaki Saad, a former director of the Muslim Brotherhood’s political wing in Jordan, blamed the government for initiating policies that drove “radical young people into the arms of Al Qaeda.”
Posted in Afghanistan, Diplomacy, Islamist movements, Jordan, Military, Muslim Brotherhood, Terrorism | Comment »
Iraq: A Critical Year Ahead
December 22nd, 2009 by Jason
Kenneth Pollack warns that “while [Iraq] has made tremendous progress in both the security and political realms, all of those gains are fragile and could evaporate quickly if strained.” Pollack argues “the mistake we are in danger of making in Iraq is that as our military steps back, our civilians are not always stepping up.” If Iraqis begin to question our resolve, then ordinary Iraqis will have no choice but to support militias who might protect them in what they perceive as an impending civil war.
Fareed Zakaria also warns against forgetting the war in Iraq, contending that while the surge was a military success, Iraq has yet to resolve its fundamental political differences that preclude a stable future. Therefore, the Obama administration should maximize this opportunity to realize Iraq’s potential as an “extraordinary model for the Arab world.” While more pessimistic than Zakaria, Andrew Sullivan agrees this year will be “critical” in determining the ultimate success or failure of the war in Iraq.
John Hannah responds to the Iranian incursion into Iraqi territory. He argues that the incident proves that the Iraqi government is increasingly confident in protecting its sovereignty and Iraq has the potential to emerge as a “central pillar” in America’s struggle against violent Islamist extremism. Given the “flaccid U.S. response” to the incident, Hannah urges to “do far more to support our Iraqi friends.” While the incident has since died down, George Friedman argues Iran showed it might not wait for the U.S. to initiate a conflict. Now that Prime Minister Maliki has proven he is not an Iranian puppet but an Iraqi patriot, Hussain Abdul-Hussain argues the Gulf countries should “embrace a neighbor currently emerging from years of tyranny followed by civil strife.”
Finally, the AP reports a suicide bomber in northern Iraq has killed a city council chief, a member of the Turkmen minority affiliated with the Sunni Iraqi Islamic Party.
Posted in Democracy Promotion, Elections, Freedom, Iraq, Kurds, Military, Oil, Political Parties, Sectarianism, Terrorism, US foreign policy | Comment »
Yemen: The Need for a Broader Perspective?
December 22nd, 2009 by Jason
Time Magazine explores the potential fallout from U.S. assistance in strikes and raids against Al-Qaeda militants in Yemen. The article quotes Gregory Johnsen who warns “you can’t just go kill a few individuals and the al-Qaeda problem will go away,” especially when such attacks result in civilian casualties. As Mohammad Quhtan of Yemen’s opposition Islamist al-Islah party explains, “Al-Qaeda will be able to recruit a lot more young people, at least from the tribes that were hit.”
Instead, Johnsen repeats his call for (see our previous post) a broader American foreign policy that will undermine Al-Qaeda. He points to a Reuters article that describes how, in addition to al-Qaeda, falling oil income, water shortages, humanitarian crises, the Houthi conflict, and a southern separatist movement all contribute to Yemen’s instability.
Posted in Middle Eastern Media, Military, Oil, Political Parties, Public Opinion, Terrorism, US foreign policy, Yemen, al-Qaeda | Comment »
Yemen: U.S. Assisted Raids on al-Qaeda
December 21st, 2009 by Jason
The Washington Post reports that the U.S. “provided intelligence and other assistance to Yemeni forces in attacks Thursday against suspected al-Qaeda targets.” According to The New York Times, President Obama approved the request for support from the Yemeni government for the raids which killed at least 34 militants.
Waq al-Waq worries that the U.S. is not only providing assistance against al-Qaeda, but against the Houthis as well, which he calls a “mistake.” In addition, he questions the success of the raids given the high number of civilian casualties,the blowback in the Yemeni press, and the failure to kill the main target, Qasim al-Raymi. Instead, he urges the U.S. to do “a lot more prep work and development work to […] undermine al-Qaeda.” Finally, he points to a report by Alistair Harris and Michael Page that warns against narrowly focusing on al-Qaeda to the exclusion of the other problems that confront Yemen.
Meanwhile, a Houthi spokesman is claiming Saudi air strikes killed 54 civilians, as local tribal sources have informed that the rebel leader Abdul Malak al-Houthi has been seriously injured. Neither of these reports have been confirmed independently.
Posted in Military, Publications, Terrorism, US foreign policy, Yemen, al-Qaeda | 1 Comment »
Iraq: Iranian Troops Enter Contested Oil Field
December 18th, 2009 by Jason
Iraq officials have confirmed that Iranian soldiers have entered Iraqi territory and claimed an oilfield whose ownership is disputed by Iran. A U.S. military spokesman stated “there has been no violence related to this incident and we trust this will be resolved through peaceful diplomacy between the governments of Iraq and Iran.”
During a trip to Iraq, Admiral Mullen affirmed that the Iraq drawdown will proceed as scheduled, despite delayed elections and a recent spike in bombings. Meanwhile, Iraqi forces are on alert after threats of violence during the coming Christmas holiday.
IraqPundit relays a conversation he had with laborers from Sadr City who expressed their discontent with Moktada al-Sadr as well as the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council. Instead, they plan to vote for Nouri al-Maliki “because he is not an extremist.” At the same time, IraqPundit reveals that many “Iraqis are disappointed in al-Maliki because he has presided over an extremely corrupt government, and he has failed to prevent terror attacks.”
The New York Times editorial staff warns that “the bitter discord between Iraq’s Kurdish regional government and the Shiite-Arab dominated central government - over land, oil and the power of the central government - is the most dangerous fault line in Iraq today.” Therefore, the situation calls for “deft and sustained American involvement.”
Finally, Peter Galbraith has written a statement clarifying his activities in Kurdistan concerning his role in advising the formation of the constitution and the negotiation of oil deals.
Posted in Afghanistan, Diplomacy, Elections, Iraq, Kurds, Legislation, Military, Oil, Political Parties, Public Opinion, Sectarianism, Secularism, Terrorism, US foreign policy, United Nations | Comment »
Yemen: Al Qaeda Killed, Captured
December 17th, 2009 by Jason
Al Arabiya reports that Yemeni security forces have killed 34 al-Qaeda militants and arrested 17 more , foiling several planned terrorist attacks. However, Gregory Johnsen at Waq al-Waq worries that the number of innocent people killed in the raids will “create a problem for the government with regards to retaliatory attacks in the future.” Furthermore, he observes it’s not clear that all the militants killed were, in fact, members of al-Qaeda.
Joost Hiltermann contends in Foreign Affairs that the Houthi rebellion is misunderstood, arguing the “insurgency is more a reaction to a dysfunctional government than an inspired, centralized ideological movement.” In fact, Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi gained his popularity because “he voiced popular discontent about the Yemeni political system - its corruption and perpetuation of social inequalities, its allegiance to Saudi and U.S. foreign policy objectives, its support of Salafi encroachment, and its repression of Zaydi revivalists.” As such, Hiltermann warns that Saudi intervention will only exacerbate the conflict.
Yesterday, Houthi rebels accused the U.S. Air Force of cooperating with the Yemeni government in an attack that killed at least 120 people. The U.S. has not responded to the accusation. At the same time, Human Rights Watch has criticized the Yemeni government for abusing the human rights of southern Yemeni secessionists.
Posted in Human Rights, Islamist movements, Military, Saudi Arabia, Terrorism, Yemen, al-Qaeda | Comment »
Iraq: Security Forces Involved in Bombings
December 17th, 2009 by Jason
Reuters reports that Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki admitted that at least 45 Iraqi security force members were involved in the attacks last week that killed over 100 people. Maliki assured the attacks would not affect the U.S. withdrawal or plans to hold elections in March. His speech comes as ministerial buildings in Baghdad and Mosul were once again targeted by attacks this Tuesday, killing nine people.
Posted in Elections, Iraq, Military, Terrorism | Comment »
Nobel: Obama’s Speech and Reaction
December 12th, 2009 by Jason
President Obama accepted his Nobel Peace Prize yesterday in Oslo, Norway. In his acceptance speech (full text), Obama affirmed that the award “speaks to our highest aspirations - that for all the cruelty and hardship of our world, we are not mere prisoners of fate. Our actions matter, and can bend history in the direction of justice.” Throughout the speech, Obama balanced the tension between the aspiration for peace and the necessity of war.
President Obama reminded the audience that America’s historical leadership in “constructing an architecture to keep the peace” that has advanced “the ideals of liberty, self-determination, equality and the rule of law.” Through the sacrifice and service of its citizens, the United States has promoted peace, prosperity and democracy “not because we seek to impose our will” but out of “enlightened self-interest, because we seek a better future for our children and grandchildren, and we believe that their lives will be better if other peoples’ children and grandchildren can live in freedom and prosperity.”
Elaborating further, President Obama explained that peace is not simply a lack of conflict, but rather it must “based upon the inherent rights and dignity of every individual.” Therefore, President Obama promised that “even as we respect the unique culture and traditions of different countries, America will always be a voice of those aspirations that are universal.” Because that voice sometimes must be delivered directly to authoritarian regimes, Obama rejected “sanctions without outreach, and condemnation without discussion [that] can carry forward a crippling status quo.” As such, the world “must try as best we can to balance isolation and engagement; pressure and incentives, so that human rights and dignity are advanced over time.”
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Posted in Afghanistan, Democracy Promotion, Diplomacy, EU, Freedom, Human Rights, Military, Multilateralism, Neocons, Terrorism, US foreign policy, US politics, al-Qaeda, sanctions | Comment »
