December 21st, 2007 by Celest

Frederick W. Kagan, writing in the Wall Street Journal (subscription only), argues that the US needs to show more support for democracy in the Middle East. “In the past, supporting our friends … has meant helping more or less authoritarian governments retain power in exchange for their help in stabilizing the region.” However, now is “an epochal moment: The U.S. has a chance to … throw itself behind two new constitutional democracies that occupy critical geostrategic positions in the most dangerous part of the world.”

He says that Pres. Bush has taken the right step to work on a bilateral agreement with Iraq and should make a similar agreement with Afghanistan. He wonders if democrats can move beyond Bush bashing to defending our real interests in the Middle East and supporting our friends.

Posted in Afghanistan, Democracy Promotion, Diplomacy, Iraq, US foreign policy |