Wednesday, December 14, 2022

8-minute-video: The State Department's systematic failures in the Middle East

by Ambassador (ret.) Yoram Ettinger

YouTube

Synopsis:
*The State Department assumes that generous diplomatic and financial gestures could induce the violently volatile Middle East to embrace peaceful-coexistence, good-faith negotiation, democracy and human rights. However, this policy has generated tailwinds to rogue entities and headwinds to the US and its Arab allies.

*Since 1979, the State Department has espoused the diplomatic option toward Iran, assuming that the Ayatollahs are amenable to moderation. However, the diplomatic option has bolstered the Ayatollahs' anti-US rogue strategy, posing a lethal threat to every pro-US Arab regime, undermining the US posture in Latin America, and letting down most Iranians, who aspire for a regime-change in Tehran.

*In 2010, the State Department welcomed the turbulence on the Arab Street as "the Arab Spring," "Facebook and youth revolution" and a "March for peace and democracy." However, it has been another tectonic Arab Tsunami, not an Arab Spring.

*The State Department extends to Palestinian leaders red carpet reception, contrary to the shabby doormat extended to Palestinians by all pro-US Arab leaders. Arabs are aware of the intra-Arab and anti-US rogue Palestinian track record.

*All of the State Department’s Israel-Arab peace proposals were frustrated by Middle Eastern reality, because they were Palestinian-centered. However, Middle East reality has never perceived the Palestinian issue to be the crux of the Arab-Israeli conflict, a core cause of regional turbulence, nor a crown-jewel of Arab policy makers.

*Enjoy the video.

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