Reforms in the Middle East: How Can Europe and the US Contribute? : March 17-19, 2006, Washington D.C.Thomas Weihe Stability in the Middle East is possible only if the United States and Europe work closely together with the region's own representatives. At the 133rd Bergedorf Round Table, policy makers and experts from the Middle East, the USA, and EU member states analysed the current situation and discussed options for political action. Some participants judged the intervention in Iraq positively, despite all its errors and associated perils. The "controlled earthquake", they said, brought movement to the region's political landscape after decades of stagnation. Others argued that the invasion turned Iraq into a magnet for international terrorism, and that ethnic and sectarian conflicts now threaten to destabilize the entire region. Regarding the Iranian nuclear program, the discussion focused on Iran's internal dynamics and the role of the United States. On the issue of modernization, the conference revealed how far attitudes diverge over the relationship of state, religion, and ethnicity within the Islamic world. The Western side saw the region's radicalisation as both a fundamental obstacle to cooperation and the chief cause for the breakdown of security there. Participants from the Middle East accused the West of applying less stringent standards toward allied autocrats and being biased towards Israel. The Round Table identified ways of supporting reforms externally and developed policy approaches for the USA and the EU.--Publisher description. |
Contents
Participants 220 | 21 |
The Middle East After the Invasion of Iraq | 39 |
The ArabIsraeli Conflict | 56 |
Copyright | |
5 other sections not shown
Common terms and phrases
Afghanistan Al-Azm Al-Khalil Al-Kitbi American Arab world Arab-Israeli conflict autocrats Barcelona Process Berlin BMENA Broader Middle East Bundestag Cairo Cedar Revolution civil society countries credibility democracy democratization dialog economic Egypt EU's Europe European example Fischer forces foreign policy Former positions free elections Gaston Thorn German Bundestag groups Guantanamo Hamas Hamas government Helmut Horst Teltschik human rights Ibrahim initiatives institutions invasion of Iraq Iran Iranian Iraq Iraqi Islamic world Islamists Israel Israeli Kassem Kepel Klaus von Bismarck Klose Koolaee Körber Lebanon Member Middle Eastern military modernization Moukheiber Muslim world negotiations Palestinian parliament Parliamentary participation partner Pflüger Polenz political President pressure Professor Dr Protocol Topic Ralf Dahrendorf reform region Rouleau rule of law Saudi Arabia secular parties Security Council Selected writings Sharia law Shi'ite stability strategy Syria terrorism terrorist Theo Sommer tion traditions transatlantic Turkey United Volker Washington D. C. Weizsäcker West Western