April 5, 2011

It's 1989, But We Are the U.S.S.R.

Gideon Rachman, Financial Times

AP Photo
For the western world, the “Arab spring” threatens to be a classic case of good news and bad news. The good news is that this is the Arab 1989. The bad news is that we are the Soviet Union.

An exaggeration? Certainly. But there is enough truth in the analogy to explain why both the US and the European Union are uneasy about revolutions that – on one level – promote core western values, such as democracy and individual rights.

Read Full Article ››

TAGGED: Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Soviet Union, European Union, United States

RECOMMENDED ARTICLES

May 18, 2012
Saudi Arabia's More Perfect Union
Bruce Riedel, The National Interest
The Saudis don't try to impose their will on the neighborhood but instead try to persuade the others to follow. Even last year's GCC intervention in Bahrain was at the invitation of the embattled Bahraini king and enjoyed the... more ››
May 16, 2012
Saudi Arabia & Turkey: Frenemies
Meliha Altunisik, Foreign Affairs
Last month, Saudi Arabia rolled out the red carpet for Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The visit was yet another example of the degree to which relations between the two countries have improved in recent years. ... more ››
May 10, 2012
The CIA and Saudi Arabia Get Tight
Yochi Dreazen, National Journal
The U.S. intelligence community has won plaudits for helping derail a series of recent terror plots, including this week’s disclosure of an al-Qaida affiliate’s attempt to use a sophisticated underwear bomb to destroy a... more ››
May 9, 2012
Death of Europe Is America's Opportunity
Arthur Herman, Fox News
Elections Sunday in France and Greece prove once and for all that the European Union is headed off the cliff, and its voters don’t care.  In the short term, that’s going to mean some heartburn in US markets and global... more ››
May 11, 2012
EU Piggies Won't Go to Market
Greg Sheridan, The Australian
The European project is dead, or dying. It needs to be reborn as a new project, of friendly independent countries, before the damage it is doing extends throughout the entire globe. more ››